The Pursuit
by Lagarde
Summary: The Pursuit picks up where Zootopia left off, moving forward with the growing friendship between Nick and Judy, as well as their next case. This story does contain some violence and mature themes, though most are later in the story. Expect some drama along the way, as this story is NOT short and will twist and turn over its course.
1. Chapter 1-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 1.1 – Contemplation**

 **June 10** **th** **, Friday – Zootopia Savanna District**

Buildings rushed by as the car made its way through the city, passing animals that only barely registered on his consciousness as familiar. He could easily have put names to nearly every face, but his thoughts were a muddled mess. Mostly, he wrote it off as lack of sleep due to his new schedule. Mornings were particularly difficult, yielding at least two hours of daydreaming unless a call came in that required his full attention. Generally, until there was enough caffeine in him to force a rhino to stay awake, he could have slammed his tail in the car door and hardly noticed.

A singular moment had occupied more than its fair share of his daydreams of late, with Nick largely trying to make sense of it. He usually did not let himself think too deeply on the things that happened around him, but understanding himself was of special importance to a hustler, even a retired one. He had to, at all times, know exactly what others were thinking or how he presented himself. Taking a position with the ZPD changed nothing. He was now hustling criminals and leads, tricking them into telling him more than they intended to, which was not so far a stretch from what he did before taking the job.

What had changed was the company and it was her actions that seemed to most confuse Nick. Nothing between them had changed since his graduation, especially given that Judy had been off her feet for a few months of leave while her leg healed and her strength returned. She had come back to the force only shortly before his graduation ceremony and had still been favoring her leg when she had taken to the podium to speak. She was his truest friend and honestly the only reason he had taken the job in the first place. That part was not even a little confusing for him.

Instead, Nick found himself going over two specific situations with her where he no longer understood himself. If he were entirely honest with himself—something he tried never to do—he had acted oddly and could not even say why. Understanding why he was reacting the way he was would be essential to keeping it from happening again.

The first had been such a simple act of kindness and friendship when they had taken the skytrams in the Rainforest District. Judy had thanked him for being truthful with her and speaking up for her to Chief Bogo and in doing so had touched his arm gently. That casual expression of trust and acceptance had rattled him, of that he had no doubt.

Finnick had been his friend for twenty years, but theirs was a friendship of two criminals, each benefiting from the other. They drank together, hustled together, and occasionally chased tail together—usually badly. Never was there the type of gentle trust that Judy had shown in that one moment. The kindness in Judy's touch had startled Nick at the time and he had flinched from her paw, which was something he still regretted. She was his friend and partner. No reason for such a reaction, but it had happened and she had avoided physical contact since. Somehow he felt guilty about that very simple flinch and its effect on their friendship. Eventually, that one would be easy to mend. Judy would need to grow comfortable again around him and the poor reaction would be forgotten. Easy enough.

The second incident was entirely on Nick, as he was certain that he was imagining things and that bothered him more than anything else. He liked to know that he understood situations and this seemed so straightforward on its surface that he could not fathom why it was continuing to bother him. Each time he went over it, he could not find a single logical reason that it was even on his list.

At his graduation, Nick had been among the last of the cadets to step onto the stage and receive his badge. They had ordered them by height for the sake of the animals watching, allowing all of the elephants and other large mammals to take the stage one by one, clearing out the seating area so that the smaller mammals could be better seen. Nick was arguably the smallest of those graduating at only four foot tall, so he got to watch as two dozen animals were given their badges by their class's teacher. As he had walked up onto the stage, Nick had searched the audience for his mother, knowing she was out there, but unsure where. All thoughts of her were forgotten as he reached the podium and Judy had stepped in front of him, holding his badge. Such a small thing that she had wanted to pin that badge on his uniform and how her paw had lingered on his chest. The look of pride in her eyes…

"Nick," Judy called out and Nick snapped to attention, thinking for a moment that she was likely to slam on the brakes to get him out of his daydreams. It had happened more than once and he desperately did not want to spill another Snarlbucks coffee on the cruiser dash. "I've been talking at you for ten minutes. Did you hear anything I said?"

"No, Fluff. Not a word," he admitted, shrugging and giving her a smirk. There was no sense in hiding anything from her.

Judy rolled her eyes and huffed. "That's Officer Fluff, Nick. You do know I can have you put on desk duty, right?"

Nick actually had not realized that and his smirk fell away instantly. "You…what? Chief Bogo never said…"

"Chief Bogo said that we can assign duties to our trainees," she answered, grinning slyly as she pulled the car away from a light as it changed. "Hours and hours of paperwork. I might have you do all my paperwork, too."

"You're lying. You're not even a good liar, Carrots."

Judy scowled at his continued use of nicknames for her, but that was nothing new. Thankfully, she had given up on seriously trying to stop him on the job days earlier. "Ok, maybe that's not exactly what he said…"

"Right. So you were saying?"

Sighing, Judy focused on driving again. "Fine. I was just saying that Chief Bogo offered to let us do some overtime this weekend if you wanted. I was thinking of picking up an extra day myself. I'd love to have you out there, too."

Nick stared at Judy, trying to gauge whether she was messing with him or serious. Serious, he realized. "Didn't you do that last weekend?"

"Hrm," she grumbled under her breath, apparently recognizing his tone. "Some of us want to see the city change for the better, Nick."

"Never said I didn't, Carrots. I just have other things to do."

"Like what?" A motorcycle cut close across their bumper and Judy's curious expression momentarily faded into wheel-clenching annoyance. "What does the illustrious Nick Wilde do on his weekends?"

Nick opened his mouth and then closed it, scrunching up his brow and flattening back his ears as he thought. "I know what I'd do before the academy…not sure now. Maybe check up on Finnick. He has to have found some kind of trouble in the last few months."

"Trouble?" Judy demanded disapprovingly. Cocking her head to watch him from the corner of her eyes as she drove, she added, "Am I going to have to arrest you two on your day off? Bogo won't like that. Then again, maybe he would."

"Not that kind of trouble," he answered quickly, but knew that there was likely no other kind with Finnick. "Maybe go out drinking. You should come."

Judy eyed Nick skeptically, clearly not believing him. Those violet eyes narrowed as she watched him, as though waiting for a punchline.

"Seriously, Fluff! You've been working six or seven days a week since you got back. I'm not sure you've seen sunlight outside of your uniform. I've only been on the job a bit over one week and I'm not about to work an extra day if I don't have to."

"You expect me to go out drinking with you and Finnick? I don't think he even knows my name, Nick. That would be really awkward. I'll pass. I just don't want to hear about anything you two did when I get in on Monday, okay?"

Nick shrugged and returned his attention to the passing buildings. He lifted his Snarlbucks cup to his muzzle and found it empty, though he could not remember having finished it. It was going to be a very long morning if he was out of coffee before ten. Still, it was Friday and that would go a long way toward mollifying him until he could escape, even if escape merely meant going home and sleeping for two days.

"What do you do with your time off?" he asked, not really expecting an answer. "I sort of picture you hiding away in some corner of the station with case files, obsessing away until you're on duty again. Maybe a bag of carrots and a gallon of coffee at your side. If you aren't in the precinct…probably some trashy bunny romance novel on a beach."

Judy pulled the cruiser over to the side of the road, near one of the Snarlbucks they frequented—clearly she had noticed he had drained his cup already. Ears straightening up as though she meant to be serious, she told him, "Nick, some of us can't afford not to work. I don't know how you're getting by with rent prices in Zootopia…"

"Tax evasion, mostly."

Judy winced as though she had eaten something distasteful. "Internal Affairs said you were cleared for duty after you paid back what you owed."

"Paid everything they said I owed, Carrots. I'm joking. Go on."

Judy grumbled under her breath, likely not entirely believing him. He would have to work on convincing her that he was being a good fox before he made more jokes about his past. "Why don't you talk to Bogo or Clawhauser? They're going to the Gazelle concert tonight. Maybe you can join them and pretend like you actually want to be a part of the force. It could be good for you and Bogo to get on similar footing."

"Have you seen the size of his hooves, Fluff? No similar footing there."

"Nick, I'm serious. You should meet up with some of the other officers after shift. Maybe then they won't be quite so…you know…"

"Distrusting of a fox?"

"Distant with a new recruit," she corrected, scowling down her muzzle at him. The only reason she could do that was due to how far she had raised her seat and he knew it. Idly, he wondered if Judy preferred driving because it was her one chance to always look down at him. "Bonding with your fellow officers means a lot."

"I don't hear you saying you're going to the concert. They'd probably rather have their star rabbit show up than some sketchy fox, anyway."

Judy threw her hands in the air as her ears fell back. "Clearly you aren't paying attention, Officer Wilde. Rent and medical bills. I'll probably work all weekend."

"Seriously, Carrots?"

The stern glower she gave him left little doubt about sincerity.

"Gazelle has personally thanked you for what you've done for the city," Nick went on, sitting up straighter. His ears were perked in shock at this point. He had honestly assumed Judy wanted to work so many hours, not that she had to. "I'm sure there's extra tickets if we ask…"

"Officers don't take bribes," Judy reminded him firmly. "I won't ask."

"Right, right, officers don't get to have fun of any kind," he mumbled, sitting back in his chair, the coffee forgotten entirely. Judy was working far too hard to not have a night out once in a while.

"Bribery isn't fun, Nick…"

"Then you're doing it wrong," he answered, smirking. Sliding his sunglasses down the long bridge of his nose, he watched Judy's face carefully as he added, "Maybe I will go to the concert."

"Good," Judy answered, sounding smug as her ears went back up. Clearly she thought she had won some kind of battle. That alone let Nick know that he had to find a new angle to torture her…he certainly could not let this bunny win. "I'm sure you'll have fun. The city will still be here on Monday. You can tell me all about it then. Maybe that'll keep you awake through traffic patrols."

"Maybe it will, Fluff. Maybe it will."

Nick already had a plan forming. Judy would both hate and love it, which meant it was wonderful. He truly wondered how she had managed to put up with the doldrums of the work day before he was around to throw a wrench into her plans. He just needed to make it until the end of the day and he could truly torment his favorite bunny. The allure of finding a new game was more than enough to overcome the hour of paperwork that Judy managed to shuffle his way that afternoon, without wiping the smile off his face.


	2. Chapter 1-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 1.2 – Contemplation**

 **June 10** **th** **, Friday – ZPD Precinct One**

"…and if you watch the cards just below the top one," Nick was saying, shuffling the deck far more slowly than he normally would, "you can watch all four aces sliding into place…"

"That's awful, Nick," Benjamin Clawhauser said, sounding entranced as he stared at the cards. "Wait…you didn't do that at the open poker night last week, did you?"

Nick's ears shot up and his fur bristled as he attempted to put on a convincing grin. That game had netted him almost fifty dollars.

"Oh, you!" Clawhauser exclaimed, clapping his meaty hands under his ample chin. "How does Judy keep you from burning the city down?"

"Stubborn determination in all things," Nick admitted, knowing that was not far from the truth. Had Judy let procedural rules slide, he probably would have gotten himself arrested already. It was only by forcing him onto the straight and narrow that he had any chance of keeping the job. "Speaking of which, I've been hearing something about a concert?"

Clawhauser's eyes went wide at the mere hint of discussing Gazelle. Nick had to stay focused on the larger man's face to keep from looking over the various Gazelle posters, cups, stickers, and whatnot that adorned his desk at the lobby of the station. Idly, Nick did find his attention drifting to the calendar behind Clawhauser that showed a somewhat provocatively-posed tiger dancer from the group…though Nick did notice that the calendar had not been changed from that picture in almost two months.

"Are you going, too?" gasped Clawhauser, lowering his face almost to the desk so that he was at eye-level with Nick. The action was horribly demeaning, but Nick was used to it from far less kind mammals over the years. "Is Judy going? We took a bet on both of you actually doing something outside work, but she was saying she can't go. It's only a couple hours to the concert…"

Nick nodded sadly and leaned on the edge of the desk. From somewhere upstairs, he heard the aggravated whine of Judy and the loud click of her phone being slammed down. It was show time.

"Awful shame, that. Poor fluffball is stuck doing laundry or shampooing her fur or something. I did manage to find a ticket, but it looks like it's just me tonight, Clawhauser. Only reason I'm still here. I'd have been home an hour ago otherwise."

"Oh, maybe we'll all see you there!" the cheetah giggled, before glancing back at the stairs behind his desk. At the top, Judy was coming into sight and looked decidedly annoyed. "Uh oh. Someone looks like they need some cheering up. Did you do something?"

"Certainly not this time." Nick fought to keep his smirk from showing. Turning his attention to the bunny frumping her way down the steps, he called out, "Hey, Carrots, shouldn't you be halfway home by now?"

Shaking her head, Judy stomped her way to the desk and solidly slammed her forehead against it. "I should be. Landlord called and told me that they're fumigating the whole place right now. I can't go home until later tonight. I have to find somewhere else to be for three hours yet."

"What…a…shame," Nick said slowly, shaking his head. He must have left a little too much snark in his tone, as Judy turned her head on the desk and one eye squinted up at him. "Well it's just a good thing that Chief Bogo is letting you work all that overtime. Maybe if you do a few hours tonight, you won't have to work all weekend."

"Oh!" Clawhauser piped up, patting the desk rapidly with both hands. "No overtime this weekend. Chief Bogo announced it while you two were cleaning up after your shift."

Nick could not help himself, letting his smirk take over entirely. "You…don't…say. Huh. Well that's seriously bad news for anyone who wanted to give up their social life this weekend."

"What did you do, Nick?" Judy demanded, both ears shooting up as she turned on him. She even rose up on her toes to bring herself closer to his face, which was one of her favorite ways to act bigger than she was with him. "You know I can tell. This is your fault somehow."

Putting a hand to his chest, Nick feigned shock, but quickly gave up and shrugged, giving her his best predatory grin. "Yes. Absolutely. One-hundred percent."

"The apartment?"

"I was worried for your safety," he told her, trying to sound sincere. A glance at Clawhauser told him that no one was buying it. The cheetah was stifling a giggle, which meant he had probably figured out the plan. "A few calls to some friends and the landlord was happy to reschedule the monthly delousing."

"Nick!" Judy gasped, her shoulders sinking as she rubbed at her face. She waved her hands in the air as though trying to determine whether or how to throttle him. "Why would you do that?"

"You need to get out, Fluff. You have plenty of folks that want to see you in public. Seeing me, not so much. You're the hero, not I. So I was really thinking that you should go to the concert…"

"Nick! I can't!" she snapped, ears falling limply as she nervously glanced at Clawhauser. Nick knew full well that Judy was embarrassed by where she lived and some choices she had to make regarding money, so he had to assume she was hiding that from the others. "We already talked about it. I need to go home."

"Guess you can't," Nick answered, smiling again. "Whatever is a cu…small little bunny in the big city to do on a Friday night?"

"Nick…" Her brows came down dangerously. She must have caught his slip.

"I would say work herself to death, but if the chief has denied overtime…"

"Nick!"

"…then I guess she just has to find somewhere else to be." Digging in his breast pocket, Nick pulled out the concert ticket that he had gotten from a scalper shortly after they had gotten back to the station, while Judy was busy with paperwork. She did not need to know that it had cost nearly three times the official price. She also definitely did not need to know that he had bought it from a scalper inside the jail and the price had been the weasel's bail. "It's a good thing this fluffball has a clever fox for a friend."

Clawhauser laughed and turned his attention to Judy, grinning down at her as Nick waved the ticket. The cheetah was practically perched on the edge of his desk.

"Nick," growled Judy, barely moving her jaw. She was not happy with him. Monday was going to be seriously unpleasant if he did not find a way to lighten her mood quickly. "I am not taking your ticket. I really appreciate what you're trying to do, but no."

Sighing, Nick tilted his head toward Clawhauser. "Benji, would you be so kind as to turn over the bottom card in the deck? I didn't get a chance to show you the end of that magic trick."

Eyes widening, Clawhauser did as he was asked, flipping the card to reveal another concert ticket taped to the face of the card.

"Who said I was giving you my ticket, Carrots?" Nick said, once Judy had raised up on her toes to see the card and ticket on the desk, her eyes widening. "This one's yours. That one's mine. You can thank me after the concert."

With a loud "hrmph", Judy snatched the ticket off the desk and turned it over a few times, as though convinced it was fake. Once she had satisfied herself that he had not moved into forging concert tickets, Judy's shoulders dropped a little and she asked meekly, "How much do I owe you?"

"My treat, Carrots."

Judy's ears drooped about as low as they could go. After a moment, she straightened up and pointed toward an empty part of the department lobby. "We need to talk. Now."

Feeling the excitement die instantly, Nick slouched slightly as he followed Judy to where she had pointed. Looking back, he could see Clawhauser leaned out over the desk, trying to see and hear them. How was it that a little bunny could make him feel the same way his mother had when he gotten caught doing something wrong?

"Nick, it's not that I don't appreciate it," Judy started, looking decidedly uncomfortable. "You make less than I do. Neither of us can afford a night out right now. You should save your money."

Lowering himself into a squat to put his nose near Judy's, Nick told her, "Twenty years of hustling, sweetheart. I can afford to make sure the city's best cop gets to go out, just this once. I still have a tiny bit of savings after paying off those tax debts. It's worth it. You are worth it."

"But I can come in tomorrow?"

Nick shook his head. "Nope. Chief thinks that some overachievers are going to burn out. Not sure who would have convinced him of that. I know you had your heart set on working. He wants you to take at least tomorrow off, though I couldn't quite convince him on Sunday. I'll buy lunch all next week if you'll just relax for two whole days. Deal?"

Looking nearly ready to pout or openly whine, Judy stomped her foot and glanced around the lobby nervously. When that did not seem to yield the answers she was looking for, her foot began tapping furiously until she noticed it and stopped. "Thank you, Nick. I don't deserve having a partner this good."

"You know it," he answered before she could add more, grinning broadly at her. "I owe you more than this for believing in me, Fluff."

Judy scowled, while still looking extremely uncomfortable. He knew she hated feeling like there was anything she could not do herself and this certainly qualified. He felt a tiny bit guilty, but as she relaxed and smiled at him, that faded instantly…right up until she punched him in the arm. Nick was pretty sure that would leave a bruise. One of these days, he was going to need to talk to Bogo about some body armor without letting on that it was to protect him from Judy's enthusiasm and tiny armor-piercing paws.

"Pretty slick," Judy admitted, fondling the ticket happily. "Thank you. Too bad I have to go in uniform…"

"Speaking of which, your landlady dropped off some clothes for you," Nick noted, stepping back quickly. He knew he was on dangerous ground now, judging by Judy's wide stare of confusion. He definitely did not want to be slugged in the arm again.

"How…" she began, following Nick as he hurriedly made his way back toward Clawhauser's desk. "Nick, how do you even know where I live?"

"I know everyone, remember?" he offered, trying to put some distance between them, but Judy was having none of it, following him doggedly. Her footfalls were getting harder and Nick knew that meant she was probably about to run him down and he did not stand a chance of outpacing her, especially indoors.

"Clawhauser!" Nick yelled as he sped up his pace. "Savage bunny! Call it in! Call it in!"

Nick took off at a run as Judy chased him through the lobby, trying to figure out what his game was. He did not want to admit to her that he had wanted to do something nice for her for quite some time and this just happened to work out…with a bit of bribery to her landlady. She did not need to know how much bribery or how little he needed the job for money. He worked there for moments like this.


	3. Chapter 1-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 1.3 – Contemplation**

 **June 10** **th** **, Friday Evening – Gazelle Concert**

That night at the concert, Nick found himself distracted the whole time. He had been so wrapped up trying to hustle Judy into having a good time that he was no longer even sure why he was there. Somehow, he had thought that getting her to the concert was the hard part and that once she was there she would spend her time with the chief and other officers, but for some reason she had stuck with him when he had found a good spot to watch the concert quietly from. Dancing and shouting was hardly his thing and he generally preferred to skulk about, even in large crowds, which he would never have expected Judy to be okay with. Still, she stayed at his side, cheering loudly and dancing endlessly. Somehow, she managed to bring the party to him, rather than him sending her to the celebrations.

"You never get tired, do you?" Nick mused aloud, laughing as Judy bounced around excitedly. He was not even sure she heard him, but she bounded over near him and hip-bumped him, trying to prod him—for the third time—to dance, too. Resigning himself, Nick set to his most casual attempt at dancing, hoping to mollify the bunny.

Every so often, Nick could make out Bogo, Clawhauser, and even Wolford in the crowd, but Judy either did not see them or chose not to go to them. Once, he tried to wave Bogo over to join them, but the chief grinned, waved, and went back to his awful dancing.

Near the end of the concert, Nick's ears shot up as Gazelle announced a new song that he had not heard about before. A low rumble of surprise went through the audience, followed by a roar of approval as it began. Slower than her usual, the song was a loving tribute to the city and specifically to the actions of those who had saved it. Feeling abruptly self-conscious, Nick looked to Judy, hoping that she had noticed and knew what to do.

A hundred faces nearby turned to look at the bunny cop and her partner, both firsts to the ZPD. Those farther out or who had not recognized the two fell into more intimate dances with their friends, partners, or in Clawhauser's case, one of the stage dancers who had come down into the crowd to keep the energy high. Nick's hands went clammy and he felt trapped for the first time in years, surrounded by mammals who were lauding the two cops and encouraging them to dance.

To his brief relief, Nick was let off the hook as a young rabbit around Judy's age came running over and asked her to dance. The two spun away in a flash, leaving Nick free of the demands of those around him.

He would not have to dance. It was a welcome relief and calmed his nerves at the awkwardness of having to dance with his best friend and partner. It was an absurd feeling, especially coupled with panic, but that was clearly what he was experiencing. He had nothing to prove to this crowd and just wanted to spend time with Judy…

Nick stared as Judy's partner dipped her to the cheers of those around them. Judy's face was ecstatic—exactly the way he had wanted to see her at the concert. Happy and free of the burdens of her daily life. No concerns for making rent or the daily fear of a criminal opening fire on her, cutting her career very short. Despite it being what he had hoped for, Nick felt deeply disappointed as the buck spun Judy again, eliciting a laugh from her that he could hear over the crowd. Somewhere deep down, he envied that bunny's confidence in going right up to the most famous rabbit in the town. That was something Nick had never managed even with all his swagger with the vixens he and Finnick had pursued in the past.

"In the past," he reminded himself, abruptly feeling out of place. Nick had just stood through an entire concert without even glancing at the foxes scattered around him in the crowd. At that thought, he did look, spotting two vixens within sight that he could have asked to dance, likely a sure thing, given his fame of late and the particular song playing. One even met his eyes.

Shrugging, Nick fixed a smile to his face and watched Judy and the buck dance a little longer, until the song faded and the next began. At that point, he began to feel uncomfortable and realized that he had spent as much time socializing as he cared to for the day.

Turning on his heel, Nick tucked his hands into his pockets and began making his way through the crowd, hoping to make it to the exit before the last song. Once Gazelle began her closing number, there would be no chance of him getting onto the subway for at least an hour. No sense in waiting.

Nick got halfway to the nearest exit before a small but strong hand latched onto his arm, spinning him around. Still bouncing, Judy grinned up at him excitedly.

"You're missing the fun!" she yelled at him to be heard over the crowd. "Where were you going, anyway?"

Smirking despite feeling a bit empty, Nick leaned closer so that he did not have to shout. "Just stepping out for some fresh air. If I can't find you after…"

Judy's grip on his arm tightened and she bounced again, clearly giddy. "It's almost over, Nick. Stay!"

His resolve crumbling instantly, Nick glanced longingly at the doors out of the concert arena, wondering if he really should stay, but not having the strength to tell his partner no. "Okay. I'll stay, Carrots. You'll have to walk me home, though. Rough neighborhood."

Judy laughed and hopped up to grab his cheeks, yanking him down to her height. Kissing him squarely on the side of the muzzle, she then told him, "Thank you so much for this! I really needed to get out."

Any thought of escaping gone, Nick stammered some reply that even he could not remember. At Judy's urging, he was dragged back to a better spot on the floor to watch from. He was still dazed when Judy pulled him into a quick-paced dance that he was certain came from a farm somewhere, but gave him the chance to prove he actually could dance, even if he hated doing it.

Usually hated doing it, he corrected. This time was different. Dancing with a friend was somehow better, different, and safer. No judgements or expectations.

Nick barely even noticed when Wolford and Francine wandered past, the wolf offering a low howl of amusement and Francine tooting loudly with her trunk. He was fairly certain Judy said something before their fellow officers wandered off, but he was lost in dancing with her, cheek to cheek—something that he was certain would make his back hurt later, yet so worth it.

When Judy finally came to a stop, Nick was surprised to see that the concert hall was mostly empty. A few hundred mammals were still making their way out and recorded music blared, but the stage was empty and it looked as though he had missed a good twenty minutes or more.

"I…sorry," Nick stammered, blinking as he tried to fully digest that he had been that lost in nothing more than a friendly dance. He could not remember the last time he had gotten so thoroughly distracted. "I swear Gazelle was still up there."

Judy laughed and the sound warmed Nick's heart. "Not for a few minutes. It was nice getting to see you relax. Besides, I have nowhere to be until my apartment…"

"Oh…about that…" Nick offered, grinning. "I really only got your landlady to say they were closing the apartment for the evening. You can go home whenever you want. I did, however, convince her to go get that change of clothes for you after implying that you needed them for some important police thing. She really should ask more questions. There's some real shady characters that live nearby."

"And you know all of them, right, Nick?"

"How could you say that of your faithful partner, ma'am?"

Judy rolled her eyes and shook her head. "What am I going to do with you, Nick?"

"Put up with me until you find something better to do with your Friday nights," he purred back at her, melting instantly at the playful scowl she gave him. Someone was definitely going to fall hard for those eyes someday. Someone. Not him. "Besides…"

A deep rumble of a throat clearing shattered Nick's thoughts and he looked over to see Chief Bogo's waist. Looking up, he found the chief staring down on them, his usual unreadable glower in place.

"Wilde," the chief said, looking down then at Judy. "Hopps. I assume we're all minding the department rules?"

Nick felt his face scrunch as he tried to make sense of that, but Judy leapt right in, stepping away from him to quote policies that she had clearly memorized.

"Fraternization between two mammals within the ZPD is expressly forbidden if either holds rank above the other," she blurted out, her ears sinking a little lower with each word. "As Nick's supervising officer I certainly wouldn't…"

"That's what I thought," the chief finished, cutting her off. "Glad to hear that we won't need to be discussing this Monday. Have fun with your weekend, Wilde. Hopps, I assume you'll be in for work tomorrow, no matter what I tell you. Goodnight, officers."

With that, Bogo tromped off, leaving Nick feeling a bit ashamed despite not having done anything and Judy looking entirely crestfallen.

"He's right," Judy finally said, avoiding looking at Nick. "I should get home. We wouldn't want people to think…two officers…"

"Right, of course," he answered quickly, shivering slightly. The ending to a nice night had suddenly made him feel like a kit being scolded by his mother again. "Bright and early Monday, partner?"

Judy smiled and nodded, setting off in the same direction Bogo had gone, her bare paws hitting the dirt floor of the open-air concert venue louder than Nick would have expected. He watched her go, his stomach in knots as he wondered if he had been a bit too forward in asking her to go to the concert in the first place. All guilt over that faded as he watched the white of her tail bob steadily until she vanished through one of the gates.

Sighing, Nick shook off his abruptly foul mood and began walking the other direction, even though he knew that put him far from the subway. At least it would give him time to empty his head without having to run into any of his coworkers.

Not much sense in pushing his luck with his coworkers. Instead, he wondered if the underground card games were going on that weekend. At least it would be something to keep his mind off his job or any distracting bunnies.


	4. Chapter 2-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 2.1 – Dedication**

 **June 13** **th** **, Monday - ZPD**

Monday morning, Nick was at the station far earlier than usual…that was to say, he arrived more or less on time, such that he would not have to make a mad scramble to reach the bullpen in time for the briefing. Largely, this was due to him having been up nearly until it was time to leave for the precinct. While the poker game had not gone exceptionally well for him, he did have a little more than a hundred extra dollars in his pocket that he had not had the day before, as well as a touch of a hangover.

Nick stumbled out of the locker rooms, still fastening his uniform's tie. Without coffee having set in, he was largely numb from the neck up, moving by rote habit, rather than conscious thought. As such, he had nearly staggered past Clawhauser's desk before he stopped, his brain barely registering something different.

Leaning back, Nick pulled down his glasses to skim the cheetah's desk for what had caught his eye. Pictures were the same. Mug half-full of coffee. Stickers on random objects extolling Gazelle's latest tour. There was a new CD on the desk that he had likely purchased at the concert, but that wasn't what had caught Nick's eye. Instead, it was a new photograph at the back wall, beside the calendar—which still was two months behind. The picture was of Clawhauser and one of the tiger dancers from the concert, who was licking Benjamin's cheek as the cheetah appeared to be squealing in amusement or joy. Whether the scene was posed or the two had actually hit it off was less important to Nick than knowing he was going to hear about the concert no less than fifty times before Clawhauser moved on to a new topic.

"Well, someone had a good time," Nick told himself, grinning as he made his way toward the bullpen. "Now, how can I use that against him for a chuckle later…?"

Nick hurriedly filled a cup of coffee at the pot just outside the bullpen, while Wolford waited for his turn at the precious life-giving drink of early mornings.

"You look like something mauled you, Wilde," the larger wolf told Nick, chuckling. "Monday not treating you so well?"

Nick tilted his nose down so that he could look up at Wolford over his sunglasses with what he hoped was a disgusted glare. "Foxes are nocturnal. Always have been. Don't expect me to love mornings, just because we don't skulk around the woods anymore."

"Wolves are nocturnal, too…"

"Clearly we were better at it," Nick replied quickly, before walking away and sipping at his coffee, nearly burning his tongue as he choked down the awful brew. He began to wonder yet again how the department could make coffee into such a horrific sludge.

Still feeling leaden as his feet barely left the floor with each step, Nick made his way into the bullpen and over to where he and Judy always sat at the front of the room. Coughing on another sip of his drink, he meandered over to his shared chair and grumbled his usual Monday greeting to Judy in the form of a vague, "Move over, Fluff."

The lack of overly-cheerful greeting and scooting of Judy to the far side of the large chair startled Nick and he looked across the empty chair in confusion. Still not entirely awake, he turned slowly in a full circle, trying to spot where Judy might be sitting, but found that she was the only officer missing. Several of the others did notice his confusion and Francine waved him toward his seat as the thump of Chief Bogo marching into the room behind him let him know that he was out of time to figure out where Judy might be.

"All right, everyone sit," bellowed Bogo, as Nick scrambled up onto his chair, nearly spilling his coffee along the way. "Today, we're a bit tight on officers. Hopps will be out for the rest of the week and Grizzoli on paid migration, we're all going to be working a little harder than usual…"

Nick's attention for the briefing collapsed as he looked at the other half of his chair in confusion. Judy was rarely sick and even if she had been, she would have worked through it no matter what anyone told her. Wondering if he had missed a call from her that might explain, Nick pulled out his phone, but there were no missed calls or texts from her.

"Am I boring you, Wilde?" Bogo demanded, huffing loudly.

"Yes, but please carry on," replied Nick, smirking out of habit as he put away his phone.

The chief glowered briefly, but then resumed handing out assignments to each of the remaining officers on shift. When all but Nick had been given tasks for the day, the room quickly cleared out, leaving only Nick and Bogo behind.

"Am I in some serious trouble?" Nick asked as he met Bogo's glare. "What did I do, Chief?"

"Maybe you can tell me."

Nick's brain scrambled for anything that might warrant a talking-to, but he came up blank. Briefly, he considered that the Zootopia Internal Affairs had done a second check into his finances and he might have to repay more back taxes, but he was certain they would not find anything else. He had been very careful that they would only find some of his money.

"I…drank too much last night?" offered Nick, shrugging and smiling half-heartedly.

"Clearly." Chief Bogo moved around his podium and walked up to stand in front of Nick. With Nick standing on the chair, Bogo was only a few feet taller than he was. "I was given explicit orders not to tell you why you are without a partner for today. I had some question about why she might have given me that request. Did you do something to Hopps, Wilde?"

"We both know I would never intentionally do anything to hurt her, Chief."

Bogo watched him intently for a moment, but then huffed and nodded. "I know. I think she wanted to make sure you didn't worry about her. I had to be sure, though, after seeing you two at the concert."

Nick swallowed hard, wondering if her absence was somehow his fault. He hurriedly thought through the last few things they had said, but came up shy of anything that might make Judy take days off. A dozen stiches in her leg and a fractured bone had been barely enough to convince her to stay home. If Bogo had not forbidden her to return before getting doctor approval, she probably would have tried to keep working.

"Is she okay, Chief?" Nick asked, setting aside his sunglasses and coffee. "If she doesn't want me to ask about details, I won't. I just want to know my partner isn't in some kind of trouble."

Bogo smiled at that. If there was one thing Nick knew about him, it was that he genuinely worried about his officers. Appealing to that was not just about Nick finding out what was going on, it also ensured that Bogo would be right there with him.

"A promise is a promise. She made me promise not to tell." Bogo looked around the empty room and then pulled a large card out of his back pocket. Setting it on the table in front of Nick, the chief added, "I'll be passing that around the precinct tomorrow, once she's left town. I wanted to give you the opportunity to sign it now."

Nick stared at the card—sized for the larger mammals and big enough that he could have used it as a partial blanket—with a complete lack of understanding at first. The card was simple, with a generic condolences message on the inside with pictures of flowers and a sunset.

'I'm sorry for your loss,' was the last line on the inside of the card.

"A funeral?" Nick asked, feeling his tail and ears droop instantly. "Is everyone…her family…who…?"

"Her grandfather," answered Bogo, sounding far more kind than usual. "She got word yesterday and is leaving this afternoon. I honestly can't tell if she's taking this well or poorly. She didn't want to make a scene, but you're the closest person she has to family in town. I thought you should know, but since I can't tell you…"

"I heard nothing, Chief." He traced the flowers on the card with one of his claws, wondering why Judy would have wanted to keep the loss from him.

"Good. I'll give you an hour to make whatever phone calls to her you need and then I've got a case in the Canal District that may play to your skills, Wilde."

Nick's attention shot back to Bogo. "With as much respect as usual, Sir…"

"That's terribly little, if I had to guess, Wilde."

"…I would like to take some time off, as well. She may need a friend right now, no matter what she's saying."

"Police work does not stop simply because we want to comfort our friends." Bogo tapped the card with a thick finger. "Sign the card, make your calls, but then I need you on the street."

Nick scowled, feeling helpless knowing that Judy was going through this by herself. Having lost his father years earlier, he could guess how hard it would be for her, especially given how emotional bunnies could be. Not that he had been terribly close to his father since the divorce, but it was the only comparison he had to go on.

"What's the case?"

Bogo turned and went back to the podium, picking up a sheaf of papers. "Illegal gambling ring in Canal District. We think they may be funneling money for one of the smaller gangs out of…"

"Maury and his guard will open up the Left Paw Diner around eleven," Nick blurted out, somewhat hating himself for revealing how much he knew about the underbelly of the city. "He'll let you audit his books if you hint that you might get a warrant, but you won't find anything in there. Go talk to his mother. I'll give you the address. She'll tell you all the details to keep her baby ferret out of jail. She has the real ledgers. This case can be closed before noon. Now can I go?"

Bogo stared wide-eyed at Nick, slowly absorbing what he was saying. "Do I want to know how you know this, Wilde?"

"He had me check out his competition a few years ago," Nick admitted, smirking. "I checked them both out. Never get paid by one criminal if you can pit two against each other in a bidding war."

Chief Bogo slapped a hand to his face and rubbed at the bridge of his muzzle angrily. "I will file the papers with Zootopia Internal Affairs to get the job of clearing you started. ZIA is getting all too familiar with your name, Wilde. In the meantime, any implication of wrongdoing requires me to relieve you of duty with pay…"

"For the rest of the week, Sir?"

"No!" snapped Bogo, huffing. "I want your tail back here by Wednesday morning."

"Thursday, maybe?"

"Fine…" the chief answered, smiling slowly, "…Thursday, so long as you work Saturday."

Nick swallowed hard. The idea of working on the weekend ran strongly against his limited morals, but if it gave him a better chance of being there for Judy when she needed someone, it was worth it.

"Deal."

"Glad to hear it, Wilde. Now go make sure our star officer is okay. Dismissed."


	5. Chapter 2-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 2.2 – Dedication**

 **June 13** **th** **, Monday Late Morning – Grand Pangolin Arms Apartments**

Leaving behind the taxi, Nick stood in front of Judy's apartment building, wringing his hands nervously. Surprising Judy with having visited the place once to set her up for the concert was one thing, but barging into her personal life was quite another. This was certainly crossing that line and he had no way to know how she would handle it, especially given the circumstances.

Nick took a deep breath and walked up to the old building, pausing at the entrance. The last time, he had met the landlady at the door and she had passed off the clothing for Judy without much discussion. He had not even seen the entryway of the building, let alone had the time to look around the neighborhood before rushing back to the precinct to meet Judy as she finished up her day.

Now, he let his attention drift over the weathered buildings nearby and the boarded up shops across the street. There was far less graffiti than in his part of town, but the place was clearly on its way to the same dismal state. Somehow, Nick had assumed Judy was better situated, no matter what she said. It was hard after so many years of hustles to really grasp how badly paid public servants in Zootopia were. If he had not hidden away so much money from the ZIA, he wondered if he could even afford his own awful apartment on the ZPD salary.

Nick's thoughts floated back to Judy's concerns about making rent with all of her recent medical bills and wondered how badly that might be weighing on her now, with the prospect of having to take a week off, unpaid. She was definitely going to need a shoulder, even if that was the last thing she wanted. There were times that bunny was too stubborn for her own good.

A frustrated swish of his tail got him moving toward the building. He needed to just make himself start walking, or he knew he would stall until it was too late. Judy needed him…needed someone…and he did not want to make her suffer through this alone.

Hopping up the three uneven steps to the front door of the building, Nick was surprised to realize that the buzzers for each apartment were more for looks than anything else. The security door sat ajar, the handle broken. In his neighborhood that would have gotten fixed quickly to ensure no one ended up getting mugged or worse. Judging by the rain damage inside the door, he had to guess the door had been broken for weeks or months.

Shaking his head, Nick strode into the apartment building, knowing he was going to have to do some guesswork to find Judy's specific apartment. He knew she had mentioned looking out at the precinct in the distance, so that put her on the east side. Based on the surrounding buildings, she had to be on the third or fourth floor. With six apartments per side on each floor, that still had him knocking on twelve doors.

Nick decided to go with a more conservative approach. Racing up the stairs to the third floor, he stopped as soon as he reached the first door. Lowering himself slightly to sniff at the handle and lock, he picked up the scent of pigs, though he found that his nose was having trouble differentiating between different mammals. Likely the place had not cleaned the hall in years, letting dozens of smells merge into one faint blur of generic Zootopian life.

Grumbling to himself, Nick scurried down the hall, sniffing as discretely as he could at each apartment. The last on the hall made his ears shoot up briefly as he picked out rabbits, but it was definitely not Judy. He continued past the last apartment to the stairs on the far end of the hall, taking them up to the top floor of the building.

Nick tried to look casual as he entered the hallway, just in case anyone—Judy included—might be there already. The place was empty with a dull roar of a dozen people talking or watching television in the thin-walled apartments, letting him relax and begin his search again.

Sidling up to the first door, Nick bent to sniff at the handle, picking up the scent of one or more antelopes, though he caught a hint of Judy's unique perfume and natural scents. He sniffed again in case he had misread the hints, only to have the door abruptly open, leaving him standing crouched at the threshold as two antelopes loomed over him.

"What are you doing?" demanded the closest, who Nick guessed to be an oryx. "Bucky, get aload of this guy!"

"Don't care!" the other antelope shouted back, despite only about three feet between them in the tiny one-bed apartment. "Tell him we don't want any."

"Shut up!" the first yelled back. "It's a fox. I thought they didn't rent to preds?"

"Just visiting," Nick told them, hurrying past their door as the two continued to shout back and forth for no apparent reason.

Hesitating at the next door to look back and be sure that the antelopes were no longer paying him much heed, Nick did not even have a chance to check the handle before a bewildered-looking Judy popped open the door. She stared up at Nick with wide eyes and droopy ears, her face matted heavily from crying. Despite anything else, she appeared in that moment to be true prey, cornered by something terrifying, her nose twitching endlessly as she tried to determine whether to run. That horrified expression faded quickly and she relaxed, sighing as she walked away from the door, leaving it open.

"I told him not to tell you," Judy mumbled, walking over to her bed and flopping face-down onto it.

Cautiously inching into the small apartment, unsure of himself without having really been invited, Nick scanned the room in a matter of seconds. The place was barely large enough that he was certain he would have felt comfortable sleeping in it without any possessions. There was a tiny closet with a microwave and small fridge in it, a small desk that he could have used as a bench, a window that overlooked almost nothing, and a bed that was only just barely larger than Judy.

Lying on the floor beside the bed was a suitcase that had been filled with clothing, though that left almost nothing in the closet beyond Judy's uniform. It shook him to think that she had been in the city for half a year and had so little to her name that it could fit in a single small suitcase.

The only thing in the apartment aside from Judy herself that might not have fit into the suitcase were a pile of small stuffed bunnies on the bed, as well as whatever Judy had surreptitiously slid under her pillow as she had flopped. That was something to ask about another time.

"Nice place you have here," he offered, trying to sound casual as he closed the door behind him. "Love what you've done with the place."

From next door, a voice called out, "Nice small talk, fox!"

A second voice immediately replied, "Shut up, I can't hear them talk!"

Judy turned her head on the bed to watch Nick as he made his way past the entryway and into the bedroom. Her expression gave him nothing beyond sadness, which made his stomach clench. He hated seeing his bunny so miserable.

Sticking his hands in his pockets, Nick did his best to keep his appearance and tone neutral. "Funny thing about working with a building full of detectives and future detectives…they figure things out."

Judy groaned and planted her face in her pillow again. "I didn't want you to see me like this. You always try to cheer me up…"

"It's what partners are for, Fluff."

"This is family, though." She finally rolled over and sat up, wiping her face on the back of her hand with a stuffy snort. "I can't expect you to be there for me for this. Not this. Not when my family is going to want to make everything awkward because I'm coming home at last."

Nick rolled his eyes and sat down hard on the end of the bed, regretting it immediately when the frame lurched. He might have to reconsider morning pastries if that happened again. Once he was certain the whole bed was not about to flip or toss Judy aside, he relaxed a little and put back on his most charming smile.

"Judy, we've all lost people," he told her, putting an arm around her shoulders. Judy flinched a little, but soon leaned against him, snuffling all the while. "You know I'd do anything to hear you harass me with all that cheeriness I hate so much."

Those big violet eyes gazed up at him and Nick felt as though the apartment might have turned up the heat. Clearing his throat, he turned his attention to the window as he kept talking.

"You need a couple days to be with your family. I want to help how I can."

Judy nodded into his chest and whined. "I appreciate it, Nick. Unless you're willing to get on a train in about an hour, there's not much more I can ask of you beyond what you've already done. And since when do you use my real name?"

Nick opened his mouth, but realized he had no answer to the last part of that. He had not even realized he had done it. That was twice he had slipped. How was a fox to be taken seriously if he could not consistently use joking names for his best friend?

"I…don't exactly have anything planned for the next two days," he finally managed to eke out. "I figured you'd want to be alone, but if you wanted…"

Judy pushed Nick out to arm's reach and eyed him skeptically. "You'd go to Bunnyburrow with me for a funeral? Are you feeling okay, Nick? I don't even want to go."

Sarcastic replies felt entirely wrong in Nick's mind, so he decided to begrudgingly go with some honesty. "Anything you need, Carrots. When I lost my father, the family coming in from all over only made things worse. I felt more alone surrounded by other people who were suffering than I did hiding in my room crying. You know, like an emotional bunny. What I'm trying to say is, if you want a friend there with you, I'm happy to go."

Judy was clearly torn as he looked around frantically, trying to sort something out. After a moment, she leaned in and looked up at him, asking nervously, "Are you sure? That's asking a lot of a friend."

"Absolutely sure. Besides, always wanted to meet the famous Hopps family I hear so little about."

Laughing weakly, Judy thumped her head against his chest again. "My parents were actually at the concert Friday. Ran into them on the train home. They asked a lot of questions about you."

"How many involved a fox taser?"

Judy cringed perceptibly at that and Nick followed her eyes to the desk across from them. It only had one drawer and he was willing to bet that it had a fox taser in it. That was something to tease her about some other time, preferably when she was far from a weapon designed to incapacitate his own species.

"You only have another hour to change your mind," she told him, pulling her feet up onto the bed as she leaned into him. "I won't hold it against you if you want to leave."

From the other side of the wall, one of the antelopes yelled, "He's not leaving. Even we know that!"

Nick smiled sadly and stroked her ears. "Tell me about your grandfather. Figure you'll want to talk about something happier once we're on the train."

Judy snuffled again and hugged him tightly enough that he had trouble breathing. That was all the reassurance he needed that he had done the right thing.


	6. Chapter 2-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 2.3 – Dedication**

 **June 13** **th** **, Monday Afternoon – Approaching Bunnyburrow**

"Are you sure about this?" she asked for perhaps the thousandth time since the 'Approaching Bunnyburrow' sign had come into view. Judy grabbed his paw nervously, squeezing it as though trying to keep him from running, when he was certain she was the one at greater risk of flight. "I haven't told them yet. You can just stay on the train…"

"And abandon my favorite bunny? Not happening, Fluff."

Nick smiled as he leaned back against the padded seats of the Zootopia Express. He had resigned himself to his decision and each time Judy pleaded with him told him how nervous she was about the whole situation. Only half of it likely had anything to do with the fact that she was holding a fox's paw in public. With them heading into the rural areas around Zootopia, Nick actually wondered if her being so close was still illegal there.

Opening his eyes a crack, Nick realized that a bunny family across from them was staring at him with open-mouthed horror. Even when they saw him looking back, they did not make any effort to hide their gawking or the disgusted looks down at his and Judy's paws.

Nick knew he should just ignore them, but that was not his way when it came to such attitudes. He was past accepting it and he knew that for all her grousing about his behavior, Judy would support him when he made an ass of himself, which was inevitable.

Leaning over Judy slowly, Nick put his arm around her so that she would not think to look up as he opened his mouth and bared his fangs over her head. He held his breath once he was in position to try and keep from drooling on Judy. The bunnies across from them squeaked in dismay as he held the awkward angle, until at last the whole bunny family got up and moved to another part of the train car.

"Nick?"

Snapping his jaw shut and hoping Judy had not noticed his antics, Nick frantically looked around until he spotted a window to act as though he had been staring out it the whole time.

"Yes, Carrots?"

Turning her head up at him, Judy punched him in the ribs. "There are window reflections. You're awful."

Nick looked back toward where the bunnies had been sitting and saw that the windows over their bench reflected what he was doing. Judy had watched everything.

"You didn't object the last time I tried to bite your head off," he pleaded, trying to sound a little remorseful. "I was just playing with them…"

"The last time was my idea and was to catch a criminal, Nick," she reminded him, sighing and putting her head on his shoulder again. "I'll forgive it this once. Please don't do that around my family. This is going to be hard enough as it is."

"The funeral or explaining me?"

"Hmmm…both? They know you're my partner and they're getting better about foxes…but…" The rest of the statement faded into nervous mumbles as she nibbled her lip.

"I'll be on my best behavior for your thousand siblings. I promise."

"Nick, I don't even know what you on good behavior looks like. Besides, it's only two hundred ninety-six."

"Two hundred ninety-six…siblings?"

Judy nodded and sat upright, untangling her paw from his. "Not that they can all make it. I think mum said there would be about a hundred-fifty of my siblings and maybe forty of theirs. With another few dozen people that knew him…it'll be a little small at three hundred or less."

Nick's mouth went dry at the idea of so many people in one place. His own father's funeral had drawn no more than thirty people and he had been far from unpopular. The idea that so many were blood kin was more than he had really thought through.

"I meant to ask before we left," he began, clearing his throat as he tried to slightly redirect the topic. "Does Bunnyburrow have a hotel or something? Not sure where I'll be able to stay."

Judy nodded and flopped back in her seat, eyes on the ceiling. "There is, but that's not fair to you. My parents' place has more than enough room, if you can put up with that many bunnies in one place. We'll find a room for you, though it might be a little cramped."

Nick did not have a chance to ask more questions before the train lurched as it slowed to a stop. Outside the long windows, he could make out the end of a long cement platform and then a train station. Blocking most of the view were hundreds of perked ears of mammals too short to be visible in the window itself.

"Get ready," Judy warned him, squeezing his paw briefly and then getting up. She took a deep breath and fixed a practiced smile on her face, bounding toward the door as it opened.

Getting up from the bench, Nick tried to convince himself he had done the right thing. Everything would be fine. All he had to do was stay at Judy's side and be nice enough to her relatives for two days. He had run scams longer than that. This would be easy…

Nick stepped into the door a few feet behind Judy and reconsidered the "easy" part of his plan. Two hundred bunnies were milling about the platform, all trying to reach Judy and greet or hug her. She moved deftly between them, but Nick could not even imagine how she knew all their names. He prided himself on knowing everyone in Zootopia, but having so many mammals in one small space felt overwhelming.

Then, two hundred sets of large eyes and twitching noses turned to stare directly at Nick as Judy pointed his way. She must have just told them that he was traveling with her. With a deafening change, the platform went silent and Nick swore he could hear his heart pounding.

"This is Nicholas Wilde," Judy proclaimed, spreading both arms to gesture at him. "He offered to come along…"

The rest of the statement was drowned out by the return of all the bunnies talking at once. Nick heard dozens of questions about foxes in general, something about Judy's safety, and several of the smaller bunnies asking loudly if he would show them his fangs. It all made his head spin and he hurriedly picked up the small bag he had packed and slunk his way onto the platform, trying to mingle as best he could without answering.

Within seconds, a dozen sets of paws had ahold of his arms and were dragging him along behind the main crowd as they headed down the road and away from the train station. The walk was long—maybe four miles—with no hint of a break from the chatter the whole way. At best, Nick managed a few polite replies of "yes" and "no" but mostly kept trying to sort out one voice from another and determine if he had seen a given face already. They all blurred together into a mob of small prey that…

Nick locked his jaw and shifted his attention to the road ahead as he realized that panic had almost given him a moment of instinctual reaction. It was a rare enough thing that most animals had experienced it only a handful of times in their lives, but everyone knew that gut-wrenching moment for what it was. He had seen it once already in Judy when he had threatened to eat her and she had scrambled for her fox repellant. They might be civilized, but every mammal still had that urge to react when things overwhelmed them.

This was going to be a very long two days, but he would put up with it for Judy's sake.


	7. Chapter 2-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 2.4 – Dedication**

 **June 13** **th** **, Monday Evening - Bunnyburrow**

Judy scrambled to get back in control of her life as her family threatened to undo that precarious balance she needed. Brothers and sisters were trying to do everything for her and Nick, making her feel helpless, which was one of the worst feelings Judy could imagine. It was bad enough having to come home under such circumstances, but to be treated as a guest of honor at a funeral was hardly how she wanted things to play out.

The moment they had gotten inside the home, her mother had whisked Nick away in an effort to keep him far from her father, who had yet to say anything more than "huh" since the train had arrived. With her mother and Nick, nearly twenty siblings had scampered off to watch him and ask questions about everything from the way he dressed to why his fur was red. That fox was a saint for putting up with any of it, especially without any obligation to do so.

"Dad," Judy prodded, once the kitchen had quieted down a little. Her father was still fussing with a button on his sleeve, as though he had not heard anything. "Dad?"

"Huh? What was that, Jude?" he asked, blinking hard as he finally looked up. After a second, he gave her a half-hearted smile. "Got lost to some daydreams there."

Judy put a paw over her father's squeezing tightly. "I know this is hard. What can I do?"

Stu shook his head and waved his other paw dismissively. "Pa knew it was coming. We all were ready for it…as ready as anyone can be."

"Then what? Is there something I can help with for the funeral tomorrow?"

Her father's mouth moved a few times before he found the right words. "Jude…what's that…uh…your partner doing here? Just seems a little odd. Not that I'm judging…your mother would not be okay with me doing that, not one bit. I just don't understand."

There it was. Judy had known that old prejudices were not as far behind them as she had been told, but she had expected that they would have at least made it until after the funeral before things got weird. Leaning slightly on her stool, Judy skimmed over her father's overalls, making sure there was no outline of a fox taser anywhere.

"He's my friend and my guest," she chided, tightening her grip on her father's paw. "Be nice to him. I know you know how. It's been months since you started working with Gid. This is who I work with. If he gets tased, you have me to deal with. Understood?"

Smiling and mumbling something agreeable, Stu patted her hand. "No worries. Too much to worry about already. Where're my manners? Have you two eaten? I can never remember how long the train ride is."

"A little under four hours," Judy answered, refusing to release his paw when he tried to pull away. "I don't know about Nick, but I'm starving. He probably will be once he stops panicking."

"Him? Panicking? He's a…you know…"

"Fox? Predator? Dad, you need to stop. He's just Nick. He's surrounded by Hoppses who are looking at him like he's going to eat them. Of course he's panicking. He just won't say anything. If he gets really quiet, it means he's scared and wants to hide it."

Stu eyed Judy skeptically. "You know an awful lot about this…"

"Nick."

"…this Nick," he finished, though that was clearly not what he had been about to say.

"I work with him. Of course I know him. He's also my only real friend—"

Judy bit her lip and let her ears drop as she realized what she had said. Her parents would worry themselves sick if they thought she did not have a hundred friends at all hours of the day to surround herself with. It was just how rabbits were. The idea of only having one friend or family member around was akin to forced isolation.

"That…that just won't do," her father told her, frowning deeply. "I'll talk with your mother. Maybe we can find one of your cousins in town."

"Dad…"

"Better yet, you remember that Springer boy? I think he moved to Zootopia…"

"Dad!"

"The city's got to have a lot of eligible young boys…"

"Dad! Stop!"

"Girls? I lose track with which of you are into what…"

"Dad, just…I'm fine. Stop worrying."

"Oh that's not going to happen," Stu assured her. "For now, though, what can we fix you two? I think your mother has a carrot casserole in the fridge."

Judy's heart skipped a beat as she realized that as good as the home-cooked meal sounded, Nick was probably not so eager to eat anything carrot-based. He had tried her carrot spice mocha once and had taken half the day to stop gagging and wiping at his tongue. Without something fish or fowl mixed into a meal, he was going to be very grumpy and there was approximately no chance of finding either in Bunnyburrow.

"Do we have anything with blueberries…really any sweet berries?" she asked hopefully. "He's got a sweet tooth. Carrots probably won't go over well."

Stu gave her another worried look, but nodded and got up, making his way to their fridge. Poking around inside, he pulled out the already-mentioned casserole and a few pies that Judy could smell as strawberry and blueberry. Gid's cooking, most likely.

"Nothing on-hand that he would probably eat beyond sweets," her father lamented, setting the pies on the counter. "We can fix something more appropriate tomorrow. Gid bakes all kinds of berry and fruit-based things. Shouldn't be a problem, Jude."

Judy breathed a sigh of relief. Whatever her father had been worried about seemed forgotten once hospitality kicked in. She needed to keep him in that mindset, at least through the funeral. He had enough to worry about without focusing on Nick.

"That should be fine," she assured him, smiling. "I'll go let him know and see if I can save him from my brothers and sisters."

Her father nodded and mumbled a reply as he set to preparing the food. Judy had never seen him so easily distracted and she knew that his own father's death was weighing heavily on him, even if he avoided talking about it. Bunnies were all about family. So long as there was more family to worry about, it was easy to move past one's troubles, though it did not truly get rid of them.

Making her way from the kitchen, Judy hurried through the halls of the burrow, following her mother and Nick's scents. In the burrow, Nick stood out easily, allowing her to follow his trail the way he normally could pick out scents when they were on patrol. It was a nice change, with her finally understanding what the various canids on the force dealt with daily.

She continued through four floors down into the burrow, starting to wonder exactly where her mother was taking Nick. Usually, guests stayed on the first floor, but they were getting down to where her old room lay, as well as some of the other older bunnies' bedrooms. Gradually, the scent of recently-passing bunnies faded as the younger ones had stopped following Nick, but her mother and Nick continued on down through the floors. There was no good reason to go that far, unless…

"She's showing him my old room!" Judy gasped, taking off at full speed. She had no idea what she might have left on the walls or lying around, but Nick was an expert at using anything he could find to embarrass her. "No, no, no, no, no!"

Judy reached the back of the fourth floor and slid right past her room, she was going so fast. Running back once her paws caught on the freshly mopped floor, Judy dove up against the door, putting one large ear to it. Sure enough, she could hear both her mother and Nick inside.

"Yes, she did have a bit of a crush on that singer for a few years," Bonnie was saying, chuckling. "Never really understood it myself. Who paints their fur like that, anyway? Piercings or a little makeup is one thing, but completely changing your fur color baffled me."

"Who really understands the mind of a clever young bunny?" asked Nick in reply, the humor in his tone evident to Judy even through the door. "Thank you very much for the tour, Missus Hopps. It was absolutely enlightening."

"Oh, please. Call me Bonnie, Nicholas. You're our guest."

Judy slowly opened the door to the room, hoping to help her mother escort Nick out that much sooner, but her mother appeared in no rush to move on, even after looking back at her. Instead, Judy found herself flopping against the doorframe as she waited.

"Nicholas?" laughed Nick, shaking his head and giving Judy a sidelong glance that told her he was absolutely going to make fun of her later. "Only my mother calls me that. Just call me Nick."

"Nonsense," Bonnie replied dismissively, waving both hands. "It's your name. Judith here puts up with me calling her anything that comes to mind most of the time so you can, too. Anyway, I should go make sure Stu hasn't hurt himself. I saw him heading to the kitchen and that's…well…that's not really somewhere I trust him. I'll let you two relax while we get food ready and then we'll get Nicholas situated for the evening."

Judy continued panting as she stood alongside the doorway, struggling to catch her breath after the frantic run through the burrow, coupled with her panic at having her mother randomly showing things to her partner. Slowly, she felt her ears straightening up and fur standing on end as her mother bustled away, leaving both Judy and Nick alone in the room with both of their suitcases.

"We're not talking about my teenaged crushes," Judy snapped, once she was certain her mother was out of range to hear her. "I can see it in your eyes, Nick. Don't."

Smiling broadly, Nick put a paw to his heart and shook his head. "Wouldn't dream of it, Carrots. Scout's honor on that. I'm here for you. No harassing my favorite bunny until at least the weekend."

Judy did a quick once-over on the room, finding very little that was incriminating and had not been packed up into storage or taken with her to Zootopia. A few medals from high school on a corkboard, a pair of posters for Marilyn Muskrat, and a single stuffed rabbit on the otherwise empty dresser. Of all the items, Nick focused in on the stuffed animal, picking it up and squeezing it a few times in both hands.

"What's with you and all the stuffed animals?" he asked, setting the plush back on the dresser. "I saw a bunch more like this at your apartment."

For once, Nick did not sound as though he were making fun. Padding up beside him, Judy picked up the stuffed animal herself, rubbing her thumb across the fake fur.

"Do you have brothers or sisters, Nick? I can't believe I never asked before now."

"Nope, only child," he replied, putting his hands in his pockets and leaning back against the dresser. Idly, he looked up as though realizing that if he stood on his toes, his ears would hit the ceiling. "Only one of me to worry about. Probably best for the world."

Judy smiled and nodded, giving the plush a small hug. "With a few hundred siblings…most bunnies don't cope well with being alone. The plushes feel like company and give you someone to hug when you're down or just need someone to talk to…"

Nick's practiced smirk faded away quickly. "You aren't alone in the city, Judy. You've got someone—plenty of people—who would listen if you need to talk."

"But what if I'm complaining about you?" she asked Nick, trying to turn the tables on his usual role in a conversation. Before he could object, she added, "Besides, I am alone. Have been for a few years now. My family doesn't really understand the whole 'want to be a police officer' thing. The odd bunny in a burrow feels just as alone as the bunny who's actually alone."

Taking one last squeeze at the plush bunny, Judy placed it back on the dresser. "We should get you back upstairs. They're fixing some food that you might be able to choke down…"

"Please let it not be something made of carrots, Carrots."

"…because I already warned them that you don't like carrots," Judy finished, giving him an annoyed glare. His habit of interjecting into the middle of what she was saying was aggravating at times. "Once we eat, maybe we can sit down and get you introduced to a few of my brothers and sisters, before we settle in for the night. Tomorrow's going to be long and probably pretty trying on you…I don't promise I'll be in the best place."

Nick nodded, looking around the room one more time. "Do you even have any beds in this place that'll fit me? Your bed's wider than most I've seen even in the city, but short. If they're all that size, I might be able to sleep diagonally."

The idea of Nick squirming around in a bunny-sized bed was enough to lighten Judy's mood and perk her ears and tail again. "Probably not much bigger anywhere in the burrow. They're sized for four or five siblings from a litter to share. You can only build a burrow so big, after all. My tallest brother is still shorter than you, even if you count his ears as part of his height."

Nick's ears leveled off and he began looking at the room more carefully. Judy knew that expression. He was trying to sort something out.

"No one else had things on the walls here," he noted, stepping away from the dresser and searching the faded spots of the wallpaper for where things had been hung and the carpet for indents from furniture. He actually had paid attention in the academy, to Judy's surprise. "You're telling me you shared this room with a bunch of your sisters?"

Judy took a deep breath and shook her head. "No. Like I said, the weird bunny can be very alone. I wanted to be a cop. The others wanted to play, or help in the fields, or think about who the cute bucks and does in school were. I was pretty much a party-pooper because I wouldn't settle for things as they were. I have a lot of stuffed animals for a reason, Nick."

She watched Nick bite his lip. He wanted to say something snarky, but was adhering to his promise. He was on remarkably good behavior. She also knew that could not possibly last forever.

"Okay, I get it," Nick finally offered, picking back up the plush rabbit from the dresser. "Times change, though. If things get rough, promise me that you'll come find me before you go looking for the stuffed animal. I'm a good listener, too, and I can hug back."

"I promise that while you're here—"

Nick shook his head. "I don't mean just this week, Carrots. Either I'm your friend or I'm not. I'm not great about talking about how I feel, but I can help when you need to. You're the only one who's seen me at my weakest in years. You put a lot of trust in me. Let me return that favor."

Judy knew if she let him keep talking, she would end up crying and never hear the end of it. Leaping to his side, she winded Nick with her strongest hug, holding him tightly with her face buried in his shirt. After a moment, he hugged her back, though she could tell he was still uncomfortable doing so. For all his joking about bunnies being too emotional, Judy knew that he was overwhelmed whenever her cuddliness came into play. Maybe he simply did not understand that side of her yet, but his willingness to let her cling said that he was at least willing to try to understand.

"Right," Judy finally said, wiping her eyes as she pulled away. Sniffling, she glanced at Nick's small bag of clothes and her own tiny suitcase. "We can leave those here for now. Let's go see what my parents dug up for you to eat."

"Please tell me there's blueberries," replied Nick, putting an arm around her shoulders as they made their way into the hall.


	8. Chapter 3-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 3.1 – Pushing Boundaries**

 **June 13** **th** **or 14** **th** **, Either Late Monday or Early Tuesday - Bunnyburrow**

"…and then Nick put on this great act," Judy was saying, while her parents sat across from her and Nick, staring at her wide-eyed. "Pretended like he was savage and he tackled…"

A gentle kick to her leg from Nick warned her that she might be crossing a line. Paying slightly more attention, Judy realized that her parents were trembling a little. A slight eye-twitch from her father likely meant he was trying to decide if it was time to go looking for his taser.

"…he absolutely tricked Bellwether," she finished quickly, putting on her best and most awkward smile. No reason to include the part where Nick had put his teeth on her neck. They might not quite see that as funny. "The other officers arrested her and…and…that's all."

Stu and Bonnie turned slowly and gave each other worried stares that Judy wished she could fully translate. Somehow, her parents had always managed to silently communicate and this time she hoped that her poor chose of stories would not reflect poorly on Nick.

"So…Nick," Stu began, clearing his throat. "I hear you joined the force after that, too. Big achievement for someone like you, right?"

Nick froze with his fork full of blueberry cobbler barely off the plate. "For someone who wasn't looking to be an officer? Yes, absolutely."

"No, I meant for one of _you_ ," Stu tried, but before Judy could find his leg to kick him under the table, his flinch hinted that perhaps her mother had. "Uh…I mean…"

"The first fox on the force, you mean," Nick offered, seemingly trying to save everyone from pushing the topic any father in a hostile direction. The silence around the table left no doubt that was what had been meant and even that might have been slightly understated.

Setting down the fork, Nick wiped off his mouth slowly. "Judy's the first bunny. I'm the first fox. Two remarkable animals working together as partners. The news stations love us for it. Not that big of a deal, though. We're doing our jobs, no different than you two with the farm. Which, I must say, looks marvelous."

Judy's stomach knotted at Nick having to carefully answer such speciesist questions, but he seemed more or less unaffected. She dearly wanted to tell her father to grow up and yet did not want to put words in Nick's mouth. He would be upset if he did not get to speak up for himself. A faint thump of Bonnie kicking Stu again let Judy know she was not alone in her annoyance.

"No, that's not it," her father went on, giving Bonnie a scolding glance. He was not willing to let it go this time. "I mean, all your people are really looked down on. Untrustworthy, shady, manipulative criminals…you know what they say. I'm not saying it's all true. Definitely not saying that. A bunny they don't think can manage the job because we're so small and timid. A fox, I can see people objecting because…a fox cop? Who'd think that could work?"

The room seemed to drop about ten degrees instantly. If Judy was hearing things clearly over her pounding heart, her mother was kicking her father furiously, while maintaining an entirely calm demeanor.

"I really didn't, for one," Nick managed to say without hint of sarcasm or anger. Judy could tell he was struggling, but he was making it work. Likely, the only reason he was putting himself through acting as though it did not bother him was for her sake and for that, she adored him all the more. "I think the only one who did think I could do it was Judy. Tell me…do you think I'm untrustworthy? Is it a problem for me to be here? She trusts me, but if you don't, I'll go. I don't want to inconvenience you or your family."

Stu blinked hard and Bonnie turned to stare intently at him. He hurriedly replied, "No…not at all. A friend of Judy's is a friend of ours."

After a moment of awkward silence, Judy touched Nick's arm. To her surprise, he jumped a little. "It's been a long day. We should probably settle in. Where are we having Nick stay?"

Judy's mother gave Stu another sidelong glare, before perking up and giving both Judy and Nick a warm smile. "With so much family in town this week, we weren't able to set everything up as nicely for all the guests as we would have wanted. Let's head down to your room, Judy. I think your sister Mary already setup some things for Nick. I want to make sure you both have all you need."

Stu set to cleaning up the table, while Bonnie headed out of the room without waiting for Judy or Nick. That alone told Judy how angry her mother was over how Nick had been treated. Neither of Judy's parents might have fully understood how poor their word choice might be for a predator—especially a fox—but at least Judy's mother knew that they were not representing the family well. Even if Bonnie had been terrified of foxes, she still would have insisted on being respectful and polite to their faces.

Judy looked to Nick, seeing that his green eyes were distant and his expression about as blank as it could get. He was hiding his feelings. Judy had learned to read most of his behaviors for what they were. If he was being silly or jokingly mean, he was happy. If he was being truly mean, he wanted to be alone or was afraid that he would let someone know more about him then he wanted. Staring at his phone merely meant he did not know what to do with his hands. In the absence of any visible emotion, Nick was hurting, as he was now. Once those walls went up, it was not always easy to bring them back down.

Taking his paw in hers, Judy led Nick away from the table. He tried to shy away once, to get his paw free, but she was not about to release him. Instead, she took him down the hall after her mother, keeping a good bit of distance so that they might be able to talk as they went. It was not until they were almost to the first set of stairs down before he seemed to relax and accept her hold on him.

"My father's not really good at understanding preds," Judy admitted, once they were well away from the kitchen and her mother's steps could barely be heard up the hallway from them. "Don't take it personally."

Nick shivered a little and smiled down at her. "I'm a big fox, Fluff. I was more worried about you. I've seen you threaten other officers for kinder remarks about me than that. Don't think I didn't notice. It's a lot harder to threaten your own family when they're being awful."

"You don't have to just take it from them, Nick."

"Sure I do." He squeezed her paw a little tighter, which made her realize how odd it was that he was putting up with her touching him. Another bunny would likely have not been strange at all in accepting constant paw-holding from a friend, but Judy had not realized how often they had been doing it that day. "They're your family. Good or bad, they're Hoppses. Gotta make a good impression. Besides, you might be mad if I mauled your father."

Judy started to object, to demand he stand up for himself at least verbally, but they caught up to her mother outside Judy's old room.

"Mary's gotten things all set up for you both," Bonnie announced, patting her hands together as he led them into Judy's room. "Judy, the basics should be here and I think she set out some toiletries for you in the floor's bathroom…"

Judy followed her mother, releasing Nick's paw as she went through the door. The moment she rounded the corner, Judy could feel her ears turning red.

A mattress had been laid out on the floor of her room with extra blankets and pillows for Nick.

"A word, mom," Judy managed to squeak out, as Nick stepped into the room, uttering a faint "huh" as he cocked his head and put his paws in his pockets. "Out in the hall, if you don't mind."

Bonnie hurried over and Judy took the lead back into the hallway. Motioning to Nick to wait, she closed the door once her mother had turned around to face her.

"Mom, what are you doing?" demanded Judy, barely managing to keep from shaking nervously. "There are over a hundred bedrooms in the burrow…"

"He's your friend and I didn't want to force him to bunk up with anyone he didn't know, Judith. You saw how your father treated him and he already knew you were partnered with a fox. Think about how your cousins might react if they roomed with him. Think how your grandfather's siblings would behave—you know they will be here later tonight. Given what you told us about Nicholas, I thought this would be best. Loyal, friendly, loves that singer Gazelle, has a crush on one of her dancers…"

Judy's ears burned even more painfully and her heart felt as though it might beat right out of her chest. "That's what you remember?"

"Is something wrong, Judy? You did say you trusted him and it's not like—"

"It's fine, mom, really," Judy cut in, trying to hide her face with her paw as she backed toward the room. "We'll make it work. G'night. It's been a reeeally long day."

Bonnie crinkled her muzzle, likely understanding that Judy was leaving something important out. Instead of pushing, she smiled and nodded before giving Judy a quick kiss on the cheek. "Sleep well, hon. We'll be getting the family together for the services around eleven. Sleep as late as you need. I know the police keep weird schedules, so we don't want to push you two. Besides, tomorrow evening will be running until really late."

"When do you need me to help out with things?"

Bonnie waved dismissively at that. "You worry about your guest. We have a few hundred others to help with things. We're just happy to have you here."

Judy nodded weakly, knowing it was not worth the fight. She would lose. "G'night, mom."

A moment later, Judy was alone in the hall, feeling more awkward than she had her first night in Zootopia. This was her home, where she had spent almost eighteen years, plus summers through college. This was the single most familiar place in the whole world to her and yet now she felt that she was trapped, all because her mother had only half-listened to her stories about the ZPD.

Turning back to the door, Judy took a slow deep breath to steady herself. She was not looking forward to the endless laughter from Nick. It was going to hurt when he laughed at her and that was the last thing she wanted this week. Having him next door would have been a blessing, but him thinking she and her family were a bunch of idiots was more than she could bear.

"Nick," she began, forcing herself to step into the room. To her surprise, Nick was already unfolding blankets over the mattress, clearly trying to make himself a usable sleeping space. "My mother may have gotten the wrong idea…"

"I heard, Carrots," answered Nick, without looking up from his efforts. Once the last blanket was laid out, he put his paws on his hips and eyed the mattress with serious skepticism. Given that it was the same length as her bed and maybe a quarter as wide, she could not really blame him. "She thinks I'm Clawhauser. I do like doughnuts, but I thought him and I looked a little different. Not the worst misunderstanding ever, but definitely an interesting one."

Judy nodded mostly to herself and went to her bed, where her suitcase had been unpacked for her. She took the few small piles of clothes and set them on the dresser, before sitting down on the edge of the bed to watch Nick scowl at the mattress on the floor.

"Take my bed," Judy offered without thinking. "I'll take the floor. At least that way we can both fit. It's the only way this is going to work unless you want me to go tell my mother to find another room."

Nick smirked and shook his head. "I can't see that going well. 'Hey, mom. That fox in my room…he actually likes girls. Do you still want me to sleep there with him? No? Where would you like him to stay?' I'm pretty sure that I'll be out in the field within five minutes. Better to stick with the mistake until after I leave. Everyone's embarrassed then, but at least they can look back and say there was no harm in the mistake."

Without thinking about it, Judy let out an annoyed growl—a bad habit she had probably picked up from Nick. "Like I said. Take my bed. I'd rather we both be a little uncomfortable than one of us be absolutely miserable."

"Nah, it's fine," Nick answered, stepping onto the mattress. He slowly knelt down and turned around in place on all fours a few times, trying to find any way to get his whole body onto the blankets. After giving up eyeballing it, he laid down, but his whole head and his hind paws hung off either end of the mattress. "I think I see your point."

Laughing despite herself, Judy patted her bed. "I'm going to go get changed and cleaned up. There's another bathroom on the south end of the hall you can use. This time of night, there's probably no one else planning to use it. I'll be right back."

Getting up, Judy went to her clothes on the dresser. She had not given any thought to what she could wear with Nick in the room, as that had never been part of the plan. Normally, she wore little more than a t-shirt to bed, so she had to rethink things a little. Grabbing a shirt and shorts that were a bit more modest, as well as a few essentials, she set off for the bathroom.

 _I can't believe my own mother is putting me in this situation,_ Judy thought, waving her arms as though arguing with someone once she was out of the room, her paws slapping loudly on the wood floor. Thankfully, no one in the other rooms poked their heads out to see why she was stomping. _I am never going to hear the end of this once I tell her. Ugh!_

Once at the bathroom, Judy hurriedly changed into her nightclothes. She stepped in front of the bathroom mirror, finding that the small shorts and midriff-baring shirt were still more provocative than she preferred to ever be seen in. It was all she had, so it would have to do. Nick probably would not even notice that she was uncomfortable, but she would feel a little exposed when he was around.

Judy dug through her remaining items and found a toothbrush and bite-stick. After cleaning her teeth and splashing some water on her face and ears to cool them, she put the stick in her mouth and chewed on the hard wood, trying to calm her nerves. Without giving it another thought, she packed up her regular clothes and headed back to her room.

If Nick had left, he made it back before she did and was back on his mattress, lying on his back with his head hanging off so that he was staring at the door. Nothing about the position could be remotely comfortable.

"You sure you don't wanna trade?" asked Judy, trying to articulate with the stick in her mouth. Nervously, she bit harder on it, trying to reassure herself that this was all fine.

"Not as sure as I was five minutes ago," admitted Nick, sliding down on the mattress so that his head was propped on the pillow, but his legs and tail hung off the far end. "Late night snack?"

Judy stared at him in confusion a moment, before reaching up and taking the bite-stick from her mouth. She realized that she never used one at work, so he had likely never seen her with one. If he did not know any other bunnies, that could easily have been confusing.

"It's a bite-stick," she explained, holding it up so he could see it. "It's for wearing down our teeth. Kind of comforting when you're stressed, too."

Nick's expression told her he no idea what she was talking about and would have probably looked it up online later without admitting he was lost.

Sighing, Judy sat down on the floor beside Nick. "Didn't you take a single speciesology class in college? I think most of them discuss bunnies, even if they don't cover foxes."

"Fluff, I'm lucky I got through high school. You want to try explaining all that without assuming I've had as many years of school as you did?"

Holding the stick over Nick's face so he could see the dents in it, Judy tried again. "Rabbit teeth keep growing our whole lives. Unless we want to look…you know…"

"Savage."

"…or whatever, we need to keep wearing them down. The wood's a little harder than our teeth. How do you keep your teeth from getting too long?"

Nick laughed at that, exposing most of his deadly-sharp teeth. The simple expression made Judy's skin crawl a little and she was thankful he did not notice.

"We get one set of teeth," he explained, tapping one of his fangs with a claw. "Lose or break a tooth and it's gone. They don't grow back. Now you're going to give me nightmares about bunnies with fangs."

"Seems only fair if you're bringing those in here."

Nick's grin faded quickly and he let his muzzle cover his teeth. "Sorry, Judy. I keep forgetting that I'm actually scary to someone."

Leaning down, Judy poked his nose with hers, then stood up again. "Don't worry, silly. I'm not scared of you…not really. If I was, do you think I would have even let you come to Bunnyburrow?"

Nick rolled onto his side, propping himself awkwardly on the mattress with his elbow. "Why did you? You could have said no."

Shrugging, Judy got up and went to her bed. Hopping onto it, she slid her paws under the blankets and flopped onto her back to stare at the ceiling. "It's good to have a friend, Nick. The rest of the family doesn't understand me. You do. It's comforting to know someone here will watch out for me, especially tomorrow night."

"It's part of the job…partner," he offered, his half-hearted smile visible even from the corner of her eyes.

Judy smiled broadly, still trying to keep her eyes on the ceiling, rather than Nick. "Thank you, Nick."

They lay there in silence for another minute, before Nick got up and turned off the light. In the faint light that came from under the doorframe, she could see him curl up awkwardly on the mattress. Another minute later, he took off his tie and shirt and lay atop the sheets, clearly too warm even in the cool burrow. She could not be certain, but she thought he had stripped down to his boxer shorts, draping a sheet over himself.

"Fluff?"

Judy smiled and kept her mouth shut.

"Carrots? You asleep?"

"I really shouldn't answer you when you call me that. Fangmeyer says I should pretend you don't exist, except when you call me by name. He said I needed to train you better."

Nick chuckled and rolled onto his side, his eyes gleaming slightly in the dim light. It felt somewhat dangerous to Judy, having the eyes of a predator in the dark, but also reassuring that he was so close.

"Judy, would your mother have let another of your siblings have their partner in their bedroom? I know my mother would have never let me hear the end of it. I think even at my age, she would find a way to spank me. Do bunnies just trust more…or is it that they trust you more?"

Judy rolled over to face Nick in the dark. "No. It might be because I'm older now or it might be because she thinks you're Clawhauser. The last time I had a buck in my room, she was a lot less forgiving. I think he's still running and my tail hurts just thinking about that."

"This feels like story time. Where's my popcorn?"

"Oh be quiet, Nick. I was a teenager, too. You're not the only one to ever do stupid things."

"And how do we not have a hundred little bunnies running around Zootopia with the Hopps name now? I thought bunnies were good at…how did you phrase it…multiplying? I just figured you were the one celibate bunny in the world."

Judy rolled her eyes and stuck out her tongue at him, hoping he could see the motion in the dark. A snicker let her know he probably could at least make out vague shapes. "Don't make this all weird. Keep my past out of your fantasies."

"You wound me, Carrots. Besides, I'm fairly certain no fox ever has had fantasies about a bunny and her ex-boyfriends, nor has a bunny ever had a sleep-over with a fox. I'm probably not even ready for that long of a story, covering all the romances of the famous Judy Hopps."

The humor fell away abruptly as Judy thought over what he had said. "A surprisingly short story. A few dates and stolen kisses and whatnot in high school and college. The weird bunny isn't just kept at arm's length by family. When you tell someone you want to move away and do something they think will get you killed on day one, they don't tend to stick around. Not past one or two dates, at least. Trust me when I say having you stay for two nights is pretty close to the longest relationship I've had."

The room was deathly quiet for a very long time, until Judy was lifting her ears to see if Nick had fallen asleep.

"I'm sorry, Judy," he finally said, sounding sincere. "You deserve better than that. Far better."

"What if I don't want better?" she asked in reply, pushing aside any self-pity. "If they'd stuck around, I might have given up my dreams. I'd still be here, working a farm. It's not what I wanted. Not what I needed. Can't have some buck telling me to forget about my hopes and dreams."

Another long pause. "I, for one, am glad that you chose to come to Zootopia. You changed my life."

Judy smiled and wiped at her eyes. It took all her concentration to keep from snuffling. So long as it was just tears, she could probably hide it from Nick. "What about you, Nick? Got any good stories about your conquests?"

Judy swore she heard a whimper in the dark.

"I'd rather talk about something else."

Judy froze, the tears still at the corners of her eyes. "Nick? Did I say something wrong?"

"No, it's okay, Fluff. Just not something I like talking about. Let's just say that Finnick and I did a lot more talking about our histories with the vixens than actually doing it. Well…I did more talking. He's surprisingly good at the bars. Without the pacifier, that is."

A rustle from the mattress let her know that Nick was moving. Judy wiped at her eyes again, waiting until he settled so she could offer to swap beds again. She doubted she would sleep at all—both because he was in the room and because he was going to be miserable on the floor, making a lot of noise every time he shifted.

Suddenly, even with her average night vision, Judy could make out Nick right in front of her and she jumped a little, letting out a squeak.

"Sorry," he offered, kneeling in front of the bed so their faces were at the same level. "Figured it would be easier like this, so I don't end up with my head twisted around backward from trying to fit onto the mattress and see you while we talked."

"So take the bed, dumb fox," Judy chided, sitting up. "I'm serious. I'll fit fine on the floor. I don't want to listen to you complaining for the next week about spraining your tail on the floor."

"I'd rather you be rested, even if it means spraining my tail and this coming from a fox that has actually managed to sprain his tail before. Trust me, that mattress is not going to be comfy for you, either. I'll move if you want, but I don't think it's a good idea."

Judy slid off the bed, pausing beside Nick. It felt so bizarre that he was in her room, mostly naked, and seemed to think nothing of it. How he managed to take so much in stride was still a mystery to her. Feeling a little chill, she covered her midriff and hurried over to the mattress, quickly scooting under the covers.

Climbing onto her bed, Nick definitely looked more likely to find a way to make it work, but still was a little large for the bunny-sized frame. Shaking his head, he curled up into a ball atop the blankets.

"Flu…Judy?" he asked a moment later, though this time it did not surprise Judy in the slightest. She had rather expected him to start back up the conversation sooner or later. "What should I expect to be different tomorrow?"

Any sense of wonder at her situation faded at the sobering reminder of exactly why Nick was in her room. Squirming to try and get comfortable on the lumpy mattress, Judy finally resigned herself to feeling lop-sided and turned to face him.

"I don't actually know how your species handles death," she admitted. "Hard to compare without knowing."

Nick sounded as though he were squirming around a little on the bed. "I…actually haven't ever talked about the only funeral I've ever been to. Not with my mother. Not with Finnick. No one."

"Nick…that was what, twenty years ago?"

"Eighteen. Swore I'd never go to another funeral, other than my mother's. Maybe Finnick's…promised him I'd try to make a party out of it."

"What changed your mind? You did choose to come here."

What little Judy could make out in the dark looked as though Nick was burying his face in her pillow briefly. When she could see his eyes in the dark again, he replied, "My father's funeral was short. A few words said about his life. Lots of tears, surprisingly even from my mother, despite him having left her. All I really remember is my mother crying for days after they buried him. Apparently she forgave him for being the way he was."

Judy swallowed hard. "This isn't quite the same, I'd guess. There will be tears, but his mate is already gone. Bunnies are a little more…distant…because of our numbers. If it's your mate, that's one thing, but if it's family, that's still sad but not quite the same. I'd cry for a stranger who died, just the same as a distant relative. We just don't dwell on it. We cry and we have a party…"

"You what? I heard that wrong, Carrots. Does 'party' mean something else to bunnies?"

"We usually have a small party. It starts pretty somber, so don't think we're all morbid. I heard that kind of talk in school when I was young. If you have a few hundred relatives, you can't let it consume you when one dies, or your family will never survive. We'll say our goodbyes and then the body is cremated. After that, there's usually a lot of dancing and drinking…"

"You have my attention now."

"Shut it, Nick. Anyway, the point is that we try to celebrate the lives that are left behind. I'll admit, I've ended up with a few extra nieces and nephews every time we have one of those parties. We're supposed to have fun so that we don't dwell on sadness. I've never been very good at it, though."

"I'm actually pretty good at getting other people to have fun. Myself…not really. Maybe that's why I'm here. Gotta keep my best friend cheered up."

Judy smiled at that. She honestly was glad that he had come along, even if Nick was a pain at times. There was no one she would rather have beside her, trying to keep her from moping. He was like a brother…only better, because he actually understood her, unlike all of her brothers.

"You're right, Nick," she offered, sitting up. "This mattress is awful. Scoot over."

Getting up, Judy went back to her bed and shoved Nick over toward the middle of the bed and slid under the covers alongside him.

"I…what? What're you…um…Carrots? I'm not sure…"

Happy to have the warmth of someone she trusted beside her—something pretty much any other bunny got for most of their childhood—Judy snuggled her back against Nick's chest and curled up. After a moment, he put an arm around her gingerly. The touch felt as though he was worried he might hurt her. Knowing him, that was likely exactly what he was afraid of.

"You keep saying I should trust you," she reminded him, closing her eyes. "I'm trusting you. Don't forget I can kick you halfway across this room, if needed."

They both lay there a long time before the tension faded and Nick seemed to relax against her. At last, he apparently resigned himself to the fact that she was not going to move and ended up burying his muzzle against her neck, with both arms around her.


	9. Chapter 3-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 3.2 – Pushing Boundaries**

 **June 14** **th** **, Tuesday - Bunnyburrow**

Slowly waking, Judy tried to make sense of where she was or what was going on. Her dreams had been a muddled mess of romantic nonsense, nightmares about being chased by savage animals, and tearful memories of her grandfather. It took several seconds before she realized that she was in her old bedroom and not her apartment. Another second or two and she had a moment of panic as she felt the body pressed against her and arm over her.

Memory came back gradually and Judy could both see the red fur of Nick's arm and smell him, calming her panic quickly. She lay back down, reveling in the chance to be a normal bunny. She had a friend who was willing to be close to her, to hold her when things were darkest.

That sense of comfort faded as Judy became acutely aware that Nick was pressed rather firmly—and somewhat clearly aroused—against her tail. His faint snores let her know that it was not intentional, so she had a hard time being mad, but at the same time, she felt more than a little uncomfortable. Deciding that Nick would have been mortified by waking her up like that, Judy carefully extracted herself from his arms and slid out of bed so that he could wake on his own without finding out that she had noticed.

Standing in front of the bed, Judy was not entirely sure what to do. She curled her toes in the carpet and nibbled on one of her claws, trying to decide whether it was better to wake Nick or to let him sleep. After watching him a minute without him waking, she knelt down beside the bed to watch him.

Nick was the king of trying to make others see him for something he was not. This was perhaps the first time that Judy had ever seen him without some form of mask or wall built up. In sleep, he looked so much gentler than he tried to pass himself off as. There was no deceptive smirk, no misleading glances or expressions. He was just Nick, his nose and whiskers twitching as he dreamed.

Ears sinking back nervously, Judy brushed her fingertips and tiny claws across Nick's cheek and he smiled, but did not wake. She watched a little longer, fascinated by watching him sleep. The few bucks she had ever been with had not stuck around long enough for her to ever see them asleep. Now, she had a fox in her room and not only was she not afraid, she was memorized by watching him dream.

That thought caught in Judy's mind and the normally-subdued mischievous side of her thoughts emerged. That, she could likely blame on Nick himself. On her own, she managed to keep herself entirely straight-laced in almost every situation, but once Nick got involved—even without him intending to—she found herself acting more like a teenager.

 _I wonder_ , she said to herself, sliding one hand under the edge of the blankets. _He's sound enough asleep. He won't even notice if I peek. Only fair after waking with him like that against me. I can probably make him feel guilty, even if he catches me._

Lifting the blankets slowly, Judy bit her lip as she tried to get a better view of what she had felt when she had woken. She had not had a vast amount of experience with bunnies and she knew almost exactly nothing about fox anatomy beyond what one could see outside clothing day to day in Zootopia. After Nick tricking her into going to the Oasis Spa months earlier, this particular curiosity had plagued her, despite her best intentions. She felt a little bad for even wanting to look, but if there was anyone who might understand curiosity, it was Nick. In the dimly-lit room, she could barely make out his shape under the blankets, so she lifted them a little higher to try to follow the lines of his shorts and specifically his…

An abrupt knocking on the door made Judy yelp loudly and leap to her feet, jaw clenched, eyes wide and frantically looking about, and paw behind her back, locked together. Beside her, Nick stirred and opened his eyes, fixing them immediately on her.

"Judith," her mother's voice called in. "I was just waking some of the others. I thought you should probably get up, too."

"Yes, mom! We're up!" Judy blurted out, realizing that her voice sounded decidedly guilty. If anything, she could hear the same tone in her head from the one time her mother had caught her with that buck kissing after school. Thankfully, this time her mother moved on from the door, instead of coming in. Slowly, Judy began to relax.

"That wasn't suspicious at all," Nick mumbled, rubbing his eyes. "Afraid she'll catch us in the same bed, or did I miss something?"

Judy huffed a sigh of relief and turned back to Nick, waving a finger vaguely at his waistline. "No, I was saving you. You want to try to come up with a way to say you're my gay friend right now?"

Smacking his lips, Nick lifted the covers, looked down, and chuckled. "Nope. Your way works better. I probably would have ended up telling the truth. I get honest and cuddly when I'm half-asleep."

That caught Judy as odd and her ears went up as she shifted into detective-mode. "Honest about what, Nick?"

"Ah, I dunno. I'd probably have to admit that I…" Nick trailed off as his eyes became more focused and alert. "Whoa. Not fair, Fluff. At least buy me a few drinks before trying to get me to talk about feelings. Gotta learn never to trust a clever bunny."

Feeling more than a little cheated, Judy relaxed and looked around the room, trying to remember what all she had brought with her. "I should probably get dressed. You remember where the bathrooms are?"

"I suppose that means you don't want me changing in here?"

"A naked fox will be the last time my parents ever let me bring anyone home. Ever. Possibly including myself."

"Not like they're checking to see if I'm randomly naked in here."

"They…will…know, Nick. Trust me. I don't know how, they just will."

"Okay, fine. Left down the hall at the end?"

Judy shook her head. "Right. Left is where the females are. My sisters and nieces would probably beat you half to death. That would get beyond awkward and if I was in there, I'd probably be expected to taser and cuff you."

"Do you make promises like that to all the guys and is that supposed to be incentive to use the other bathroom?"

Judy could not help but groan at that. "Nick, be serious."

Getting up, Nick put a paw to Judy's cheek before she could stop him. "I think I can manage for you. For a little while, at least. No promises if you keep wearing distracting clothes, though."

Frowning, Judy covered her midriff with both arms. She hated anything "girly" and the tiny shorts and half-shirt definitely qualified. "You may have lost furniture privileges for tonight, Wilde. I can make you sleep on the floor."

"I still owe you a week of lunches that may or may not be edible and you still have to put up with me through a family affair," he reminded her. "I don't think it's safe for either of us to threaten the other until at least tomorrow. Truce?"

Judy grinned at that and patted his paw. "We need to get moving."

Before she could move away, Nick grabbed her paw and held it firmly. "Judy…thank you for last night. I know I've said it before, but it still means a lot when you trust me. I don't get that a lot and you keep surprising me. It means more than I really want to admit."

Judy squeezed his paw right back. "That's what partners are for."

That seemed to snap Nick out of whatever he was thinking and he released her paw and sat up. "Right down the hall?"

"Yes, Nick. I'll be watching you and I can promise there's a taser somewhere in the burrow."

Sitting down beside the bed, Judy watched Nick gather up a change of clothes and stagger out the door into the hallway. He turned slightly left, glanced over his shoulder at her, smirking, and then headed down the hallway to the right and disappeared.

"That fox is going to be the death of me," she lamented, inhaling the scent of Nick that lingered in the room. It was somehow comforting to have a bit of him left behind even after he had gone. It was something she hated to admit to herself and certainly was not about to admit to anyone else.

Picking up her own changes of clothing, Judy headed to the showers and got herself cleaned up for the day. The fur-driers did their usual number on her fur, turning her into a giant ball of fluff, which required an extended period of fur-brushing while talking to her sisters to get back under control. Nearly every conversation with the other bunnies went one of two directions: Rumors of a fox in the burrow or whether Judy had met a handsome buck to settle down with. She struggled to dodge both issues with a minimum of information, lest any of it be used against her later.

A short while later, Judy finished getting changed into a pink sun dress that came halfway down her thighs—probably only one of perhaps four times in her life she had worn anything skirt-like—and wandered back into the hallway to find Nick at the far end of the long hall, wearing nothing but a towel and glowering at the entrance to the male bathroom. Given that Judy had already taken most of an hour, she was stunned that he had made no progress.

"What did you do this time, Nick?" she asked as she padded down the hall, but his expression told her that he was neither guilty, nor feeling even remotely justified in being punished for whatever had happened. At least when he caused a problem, she could usually tell.

"It seems a few bucks don't really like the idea of a predator in the showers," Nick groused, adjusting his towel self-consciously. Each time he flicked his tail angrily as he talked, the towel shifted and had to be readjusted. "I think they're done panicking now, but I'm waiting until all of them are done before I try again. I don't think I ever again want to deal with a half dozen naked male bunnies screaming that I'm trying to eat them or invading their home. One was pretty sure I was judging his anatomy, if the ranting was indicative. That may go down as one of my life's low moments right there. That sort of thing leaves mental scars and absolutely positively must never be relayed to Finnick or I'll wind up with him sneaking gay bunny porn into every conversation. By the way, you look great in the dress. You should dress up more often."

Judy's mood soured, despite feeling truly flattered by the compliment and in spite of his sarcastic humor. Nick was not one to offer praise often, but the timing left a lot to be desired. The fact that he was having to wait on a bunch of her snobby relatives and still could find the time to be nice more than made up her mind about what to do.

Head held high, Judy marched headlong into the bathroom. It took a few seconds before the bucks in her family noticed her, but then shouts and questions began getting hurled her direction as bunnies scrambled for towels or got themselves behind the dividing walls. No sense in not using her reputation as being weird and flaunting it.

"All right, I've had about enough of the prejudice in this family," she yelled as she walked through the bathroom. "If another bunny treats my friend like a pariah, he has my permission to eat that bunny. If he decides not to, I will thump you myself. I'm not coming back in here. There's only one way in or out. You pick a fight, be ready to make this bathroom your new home, because otherwise you're coming through me. My fox is going to get a shower or a lot of bunnies are going to suffer today."

Looping back to the hallway, Judy gave Nick a stern nod, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall near the door.

Nick shook his head and laughed. "Your fox, huh? Thanks, Fluff."

Heading back into the bathroom, Nick did not seem to encounter any appreciable difficulties this time. With her keen hearing, Judy could hear a few mutters and grumblings, though no one openly spoke up against having a fox in the bunny bathroom. Of course, to rub things in, Nick began singing loudly off-key once he was in the shower.

Maybe, just maybe, things were improving in Bunnyburrow.


	10. Chapter 3-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 3.3 – Pushing Boundaries**

 **June 14** **th** **, Tuesday Afternoon – Bunnyburrow**

Nick made it through the funeral by the skin of his teeth. To his great surprise, the service had been rather upbeat and he finally understood a few of the things Judy had said about her people celebrating in spite of death, rather than dwelling on it. That aside, he was not oblivious to the pain Judy and others in the family still felt, even if they hid it better than his family would have in a similar situation.

The moment the service was over, the bunnies were notably passive-aggressive when it came to his presence, with more than few openly trying to pick fights with him for disrespecting their deceased by merely existing. Had Judy not told him the cause of death was natural, he would have assumed foxes killed her grandfather, given the way others were reacting.

At first, Judy had tried to make herself the go-between, intercepting most confrontations before they escalated. Despite being a foot shorter than him, she had bristled at each harsh word or shoulder slammed into his side, trying to redirect their anger at herself. Nick had struggled at first with the comical element of that…a three foot bunny in a pink sun dress threatening to get into a fistfight with various bucks was entertaining, so long as he could distance himself from the personal aspect of the situation.

Eventually, he could not keep letting her fight his battles for him, no matter how entertaining. More and more, the younger bunnies saw him as some kind of guilty party in their relative's death. By the third time he had been challenged in the last ten minutes—causing more distraction from the post-funeral gathering than was fair to the family—Nick caught Judy's shoulder and gently pulled her back until she stepped behind him, giving him a worried stare.

"Okay kid, let's hear it," Nick told the young buck slowly, as he lowered himself to be level with the bunny. "Tell me how awful I am. Let loose. Be creative."

Nose-twitching, the bunny stared at him with unmitigated hatred. "You filthy red monster! You foxes are all the same!"

"That's not very original. Tell me what I did that's so horrible."

"You shouldn't be here!"

At that Nick nodded sagely, offering a calm smile. "You're right. I shouldn't be. Do you know why I am?"

That seemed to take a bit of wind out of the bunny's sails and he hesitated.

"Let me tell you," Nick went on, trying to keep his tone conversational rather than confrontational. "I'm here because my best friend in the whole world lost someone dear to them. She's standing right behind me and I can practically feel her eyes on us right now, kid. If she sees some good in me and wants me here, shouldn't that be enough to at least put up with me for the afternoon? Promise I'll be on good behavior, if you can do me a favor and get some of the others to let me be there for my friend while she mourns. Is that fair? Or do you want to make this funeral more miserable for her, just because you don't like me? I don't know about you, but that seems pretty harsh to me…making things hard on her for my sake. I know you bunnies don't make funerals quite as emotional as I'd expect, but I doubt fist-fights are traditional."

The bunny blinked a few times, before leaning to look past Nick and stare at Judy. Slowly, his perked ears sank and he lowered his eyes.

"I'm sorry," whispered the bunny. "I'm just mad and you…you don't belong."

"I know I don't," replied Nick, taking a knee. "None of this is my doing. If it'll make you feel better, you can hit me, but I don't think Judy will be very happy with you. I won't stop you, though."

The buck appeared truly torn on what to do, exactly as Nick had expected. "Judy's really your best friend?"

"Without a doubt," Nick answered immediately. "Can you tell me what it was that I did to piss you off before you hit me?"

The fight had faded from the bunny and he looked absolutely ashamed as he backed away. Slowly, he wandered away from Nick and Judy, intercepting several more bunnies that had been watching Nick as though about to pick a similar fight.

"Well done, Officer Wilde," Judy told him, touching his shoulder as he got back to his feet. "I'm glad to see you didn't sleep through all of the academy's classes."

Taking her arm and walking, Nick replied, "Please don't tell Bogo. I have a reputation to maintain."

They made their way from the auditorium where the funeral had been held and slowly across the Hopps' fields toward the area that had been setup for the slow-paced party that would continue well into the evening. Nick had noticed how quiet Judy had been, but somehow she had remained calm all morning. He had expected tears, but she had been distant, except when she had been pushed to defend him with the other bunnies.

At that thought, Nick looked down and saw that Judy was staring blankly at the ground ahead of them. There was no expression in those violet eyes. Whatever was on her mind had her not only lost in thought, but he also had to wonder how much of her willingness to fight was related to that.

"Judy," he started as she kept walking without looking up, until she hit the limit of her arm's length and was pulled back toward him. "Carrots. You still with me?"

"Hrm?" Judy asked, blinking as she looked around.

"You checked out for a bit there. What's bouncing around that fuzzy head of yours?"

Judy frowned and let go of his arm. "We're out here acting like anything we do makes a difference and right now I just don't feel it. A party doesn't bring anyone back. Monday, we're back to how everything was and I'm supposed to put everything from this week behind me. The thing I'm not supposed to dwell on is the thing I actually want to…the dancing is going to be hours of my relatives trying to find a boyfriend for me, which I want nothing to do with. It doesn't feel real, Nick. It's like I'm drowning but haven't realized it yet."

Lowering himself—something Nick was getting all too used to doing after less than a day in Bunnyburrow—he brushed a thumb across the wetness below Judy's eyes. "What do you want? What would help? Anything for my Carrots. Want me to eat a few of your siblings? Would that cheer you up?"

"I want to cry. I want to not have an endless series of bucks thrown at me. I want to not have relatives I don't even know telling me I need to have a couple dozen children." She sniffled and looked toward where Nick could hear music starting. "I want something like we had last night. No risks. No worries. No expectations. Someone to hold me while things are bad and then I can go on with my day, not having someone demanding more of me that I'm not ready to give. I want to go to work the next day and not wonder if someone's planning my life without asking me. It's a lot more than I'm going to be able to find, especially here. Your species gets a bad rap for being shady…mine has a whole different stigma that other mammals don't always realize is there."

Nick let his breath out slowly. He could not fault the appeal of most of that and he dearly did not want to see his friend go through what she was describing.

"I tell you what, Carrots." Nick took her paw, startling her a little, judging by her slight jump. "You said the party was dancing, people harassing you about needing a boyfriend, and drinking, right?"

"Yeah."

"Most of your relatives are scared of me. Stick with me when you want things to quiet down and I doubt they'll push anyone on you. I may not be much of a dancer, but if you want to dance without being set up, I can help. And drinking…that one's easy. If you need a good cry, we'll go for a walk so you don't have to worry about the others seeing. The rest of the time, I'll let you socialize to your heart's content and leave you alone. That work for you?"

"Why are you being so nice, Nick? Seriously, you're kind of creeping me out."

Nick did not have a good answer for that handy. He had been somewhat wondering that about himself. As soon as those big violet eyes began looking sad, he could not help but try to make things better, but that was hardly an excuse she would accept without asking more questions that he did not have answers to or did not want to find the answers to.

"Okay, listen, I'm not entirely selfless here," he answered, trying to formulate his thoughts faster than he was speaking. He could feel his tail freeze mid-wag, which had always been his tell that he was making things up—thankfully it was something Judy had not caught on to yet. "If you go hook up with some handsome young buck from the area, where does that leave me? Sleeping in the hall, is where. Not my idea of fun. Pretty sure your brothers aren't about to take me in. You get too attached to someone and I'm down a partner while you start your new life. How long do you think I'll last on the force without you? Think of what you're doing to me, Fluff. Think of the fox. You want my selfish answer, there it is. I want to keep what we've got. No changing the rules on me."

Judy laughed for the first time in hours, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. "Will you be my date for the night, Nicholas Wilde?"

Hugging her back, Nick replied, "I don't know. What's in it for me?"

Judy slugged him in the side before he could get out of reach.

"Okay, okay, I'll do it. Just this once. If you'll stop hitting me, I may even call you by name."

"You really are serious about this, aren't you?"

"Absolutely," he answered, pulling back so she could see his smarmy smile. "Whatever you want, Judith Laverne Hopps…boy, that's going to be a mouthful to say all night. Carrots rolls off the tongue much easier."

Judy glowered back at him, but soon relented and took his paw, leading him toward the sounds of music and growing roar of too many mammals talking at once in a small space.

The area set aside for the "party" made Nick cringe and he deeply regretted his offers of helping briefly, though he was not about to renege on them. A few hundred bunnies milled about a set of pavilions, with nearly all wearing oversized cowboy hats. That alone was enough to force him to clench his jaw, lest he begin cracking jokes that would probably get him chased out of town. Add to that the dancing styles he was seeing under another pavilion, a large group of older bunnies leading younger ones around to "introduce" them to potential mates, and more beer bottles than he had seen in one place in his lifetime and Nick was finding himself redefining the word "hillbilly" in his mind.

Looking down at Judy, Nick wondered briefly how someone so normal—to think he could even call her that after how they had met and how he had treated her then—came from Bunnyburrow. Her furrowed brow and incessant nibbling at her lip with her two front teeth let him know that she was as uncomfortable with everything as he was. Every time an older bunny wandered past them with a young buck in tow, she winced and moved a little farther into the shadow of Nick's arm, as though trying to disappear before anyone noticed her.

"You're hiding behind the worst possible thing here," Nick observed, pulling Judy out from under his arm so that she was no longer tripping him when she tried to vanish. "Because surely, no one will notice the only fox in town standing in the middle of a party, with…oh wait…is that Judy Hopps hiding there in his shadow?"

"Har har," she answered, still clinging to his paw. "Try to pretend like you're having fun and let me have my panic attack."

Nick snickered and led them through the crowd toward one of the many bar tables set up. Thankfully, bunnies scattered at his approach, making it relatively easy to walk wherever he wanted, despite the crowds. "Oh, yes, having fun here. Cute little bunnies everywhere…"

"Nick. Language."

"…shaking their fluffy tails. I'm not entirely sure whether me looking like I'm having fun would help or cause an adorable riot as they try to get away from me."

"You didn't seem to mind my tail this morning," Judy mumbled and Nick almost did not catch it.

Stopping sharply, he looked down at Judy, who was trying very hard to appear distracted, as though she had not just said what she did. Her ears were flat and turning bright red.

"Sorry about that, Ca…Judy," he offered, barely catching himself. "Not always something I have control over. I was sort of hoping I was more embarrassed than you were and we could pretend it didn't happen. You have a lovely tail and I'm not even lying there, for what it's worth. I mean, it's no fox tail, but I suppose it's shapely enough—"

"Drinks!" Judy cut in, dropping his paw and gesturing vaguely toward a bar, her awkward grin telling Nick he had gone way too far in his rambling. The redness in her ears had spread to her face and was deep enough that he could see it even through her fur. Even her nose was blushing. "That's what we're missing."

Nick looked to the bar, scowling at the long line that he would have to stand through, likely with more than a few unpleasant looks from the bunnies there. "Okay. I don't actually know what you drink. The strongest thing I've seen in your paws was from Snarlbucks."

"Surprise me," she answered unhelpfully, rubbing her face. "I…give me a minute. Sorry. You didn't do anything wrong."

Nick patted her shoulder and started walking, knowing she had embarrassed herself more than he had. She would be fine once she had a chance to calm down. He had seen her react exactly the same at the Mystic Oasis—though that time he had meant to embarrass her. She did not need to know that he had kept his hands clenched so tight in his pockets that his claws had cut into his palm pads a little, as he was not exactly comfortable with the place, either. Always better to let her think he was relaxed in every situation.

Coming up to the line for the bar, Nick sighed and dropped in behind a group of giggling female bunnies and one sheep, who were openly discussing the males just ahead of them in the line. The "subtlety" of the people of Bunnyburrow left a lot to be desired. He managed to keep his groan in his own head, but each new giggle and not-so-suave glance from the targets of their affections made him want to claw his own ears off. Nick dearly hoped that he came across more slick than these animals.

The line advanced at a painful pace, until Nick had no choice but to pull out his phone and begin browsing random sites to pass the time. Judy hated it when he did that, but it was either staring at the glowing slate or listening to the conversation of those ahead of him in line, the latter of which was a surefire way to convince him to go on a killing spree. If he heard the phrase, "cutest tail ever" or more stories about how someone's whiskers were coming in like he was a lot older one more time…

Nick bit down a scream as a paw came down hard on his tail. When he caught his breath, he saw that he had actually cracked the screen of his phone by clutching it too hard. Looking over his shoulder, he saw three male bunnies hurrying off, one watching him suspiciously. That had been no accident. The shoving and the rude comments were one thing, but his tail was an innocent victim. He knew that the bunnies probably did not understand after some of his conversations with Judy…bunny tails were small, rarely bumped, and far less sensitive than canid ones. Kicking one of the bucks in the groin might get the point across about how he felt having his tail stomped on, though that might be pushing the limits of Bunnyburrow's acceptance of him. He had to let it go.

Growling to himself as the line stepped forward again, Nick glanced back at Judy as the latest round of tail-discussions began in earnest ahead of him, the comments prompting her to come to mind. To his surprise, Judy had been cornered in the few minutes he had been gone, with four different bucks around her, all talking at her, while she shrank farther and farther back into one corner of the pavilion. Much longer and she would either have to go through the canvas wall behind her or through one of the bucks.

"Time for some heroics," Nick mumbled, eyeing the line ahead of him. The group of five in front of him could easily add another ten minutes to his wait. By then, Judy might well be married with children, given the way she described things in the burrow.

Leaning forward into the group of bunnies and sheep, Nick put on his best grin as they jumped visibly. Softening his tone to sound more like Clawhauser—something that seemed to put prey at ease—Nick made his best effort to sound foppish.

"Ladies," he began, making sure that his smile was seen by all of them, so they did not think he was a threat, "did you just hear what _those_ bucks were saying? I think they were talking about leaving if they couldn't find just the right girls. They've been watching you all night, you lucky things. Did you even notice?"

The four bunnies and one sheep turned in perfect unison to watch a group of bunnies at the far wall of the pavilion, vaguely near where Nick had gestured. With a painful group giggle, they ran off to investigate his claims.

"Dumb bunnies," Nick mumbled, shaking his head as he dropped the charming act. Stepping forward to the bar, he waved several bills at the older bunny bartender to get his attention and put in an order for two types of wine—hoping Judy would like either carrot wine or blueberry—and a double-scotch for himself, though in his paw the drink was closer to a single. Dropping some extra money as a tip to ensure faster service, he soon had his drinks and managed to get himself away from the bar in record time and back on his way to Judy.

Even though only another minute had passed, there were now five bucks and Judy had her back to one of the pavilion poles. Her frantic side-to-side glances and bare-toothed grin let him know she was a few seconds from a complete meltdown if she could not find a way out. To Nick, she looked like she had been cornered by savage predators.

"…and aren't you just the tastiest thing that's come to the burrow in a long time?" the latest addition to the group harassing Nick's partner was saying as he approached, carrying the three drinks.

"I tell her that all the time," Nick said a little more loudly than needed, making sure to grin wide enough that his fangs would show when the bunnies turned around. "Could practically eat her right up. Really, any of you."

The five bucks ignored him at first, continuing their banter about their farms, how pretty Judy was, and so on, while she stared at Nick with eyes that pleaded, "Get me out of here!" Only one of the males picked up on who was behind them and jumped, scurrying away with a yelp that was thankfully lost in the noise of the pavilion.

"Okay, okay, enough being nice," Nick told the distracted bucks as he balanced all three drinks in his left paw. Picking up the nearest male by the back of his overalls, Nick turned him around so that they were face-to-face. "Can I have my date back, please? She doesn't look like she's all that into any of you."

The remaining three bunnies dashed away from Nick and Judy as fast as they could, leaving behind their friend, squirming and trying to get his hind paws on the ground, while Nick kept him held just high enough that he could not.

"Nick, let him go."

Smiling even more broadly, Nick put the bunny back on the ground and let him scamper away. With any luck, that would be the last of them for a little while.

"Sorry. I saw a damsel in distress and thought…" Nick began, trailing off as Judy snatched the scotch out of his hand and drank it in one gulp. The cup might have been a bit small for Nick, but it was still a fair amount of alcohol, especially for Judy. "…I thought that maybe she can outdrink me, given half a chance. Jeeze, Judy, slow down or I'll be carrying you home tonight."

Her ears finally perking back up—though not quite in unison—Judy smiled weakly and took the blueberry wine out of Nick's hand as well. Thankfully, that she just sipped on.

"I really should have brought my ZPD tranq gun," she mumbled, eyelids a little lower than normal.

"Keep drinking like that and you'd going to sound like me," Nick told her, drawing her attention back. "That's not a compliment, Fluff. You all right?"

Judy nodded slowly, but Nick watched her ears drift sideways a little and then snap back to attention. "Just got a little scared there. They said everything wrong they could manage. One asked what I do and when I told him I was an officer, he suggested that when I find the 'right man' I won't need a job. I should have punched that little…"

"Whoa," Nick pleaded, grabbing her paw as she motioned like she was going to start taking swings. "I'm not liking angry drunk Judy very much. I've seen you take down a rhino. I don't like to think what you'd end up doing to some bunny farmer or how I'd explain that to Bogo. Let's take some deep breaths."

Obliging, Judy slowly breathed in and out, looking calmer already. "I'm not really drunk, Nick. I was angry well before the alcohol. Some mammals are just so…so…"

"Trust me, I know. Next time we need drinks, we both go. I'm not leaving you alone again, if you're okay with that."

"Agreed." Judy's nose twitched over her wine and then she turned her head a little to sniff at his. Taking the carrot wine out of his hand and replacing it with the blueberry, she went on, "How did you ever deal with being treated like nothing you do or want matters to people like that?"

"Fake smiles and platitudes, mostly." He put on an intentionally cheesy smirk, which thankfully got Judy to laugh a little. "Seriously, Judy, it's something you either get used to or you don't. It doesn't make it okay. You tune it out, or you pick a lot of fights you can't win. Or, I couldn't win. Took a lot of beatings before I realized that letting it go worked better. I think I spent half my teenage years wearing casts."

Judy's shoulders dipped a little as her ears sank. "I never thought about you going through that just for being a fox. I figured it was mostly just people saying things…"

"You mean like telling me I'm 'articulate'?" he asked, reminding her of what she had said the day they met, which made her cringe a little. "It is mostly things said, but if you stand up to it, sometimes it gets physical."

Judy paused and straightened up, a new determination in her stance. "First off…stop calling me Judy just because I asked you to. You sound like you're making fun of me more with my real name than those stupid things you say. If you're using my real name, it needs to be natural."

"Whatever you want, Carrots."

"Second, I think it's time to make a point." She finished the glass of wine in her paw and held out her other paw for Nick.

Confused, Nick quickly drank his own wine—which was surprisingly smooth. He would have to remember to bring some back to Zootopia. Taking her paw in his, Nick was almost pulled onto his face as Judy set off at a quick march toward the outside dancing area near the next pavilion. They had not even gotten halfway there when eyes began to turn their way and by the time they reached the edge of the open dancing area, Nick even caught the sound of one of the guitarists fumbling mid-song.

"Judy," he whispered, finding that his voice was shaking. Other mammals were stopping their own dances mid-step to stare and more bunnies had come over to gawk. "Are you sure about this?"

"More sure than I am about most things I do."

Taking Nick's other hand, Judy all but forced him to start dancing. He struggled to keep his attention on her, lest the hundreds of eyes on them unnerve him any more than they already had.

"Am I going to get hung for this?" he asked, not entirely joking. "I heard stories…"

"Twenty years ago, maybe," Judy replied, pulling him closer and taking lead in the dance that he did not know. "Now…I dare them to start something. No one's laying a paw on my fox."

Nick tried to only watch Judy, but the anger and fear on the faces of those around them was difficult to truly ignore. When that song ended, Judy would not let him leave, keeping him out there for two more, by which time the crowd had relented somewhat, their glares less obvious and mutterings kept more to themselves.

"Your fox?" he asked, after he finally felt like he could speak again. "Since when are you possessive…especially of me?"

Judy lay her head on his chest and purposefully popped her ears up, smacking him on the nose. "I'm not touching that question until we've had a few more drinks."


	11. Chapter 3-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 3.4 – Pushing Boundaries**

 **June 14** **th** **, Tuesday Night – Bunnyburrow**

True to his joking fears, Nick had to practically carry Judy back toward the burrow by the end of the evening. She had gone easier on the drinks after they had danced, but things had escalated with each new glass. The alcohol had caught up with both of them after they had decided to sit out the last few dances of the night and drink while watching the other mammals enjoy themselves. Though a few dark glares were still cast their way, the majority of those at the party were finally starting to pointedly ignore Judy and Nick, which was fine by them.

Nick had tried to approach the topic of Judy's comments and the awkward moments the night before, but she had made it pretty blunt that she had no intention of talking about either. She wanted to have fun and he was along for the ride.

Normally, that would have been ideal for Nick. A lovely thing at his side and no expectations was more or less the description he would use for the perfect evening, had anyone but Finnick ever asked him. With Judy, it felt wrong, though. He could not quite put a finger on why, but he wanted to know where he stood with her. A date gone wrong with some vixen he had just met was easy enough to laugh off, whereas if he messed things up with Judy he was not sure he could forgive himself.

Giggling, Judy almost fell over as she hopped through the field, coming down on some uneven ground. Nick had to grab her quickly, catching her by the waist as she tumbled. Despite how close she had come to covering her dress—and likely her face—with dirt, she cheered and put out her arms like she was flying, with him still holding her up.

"You were right," Nick told her, planting her back on both hind paws, but keeping his own on the small of her back to catch her the next time she tripped. "You aren't an angry drunk. If anything, I think you're more bouncy now than usual. That's saying a lot, Fluff."

Judy gave Nick a big grin and hummed, one of her ears almost straight up and the other flopped sideways. Her normally-pink nose was red after the last few drinks and when she did actually stop long enough to look him in the eyes, she seemed entirely unable to make her big eyes focus on him for more than a few seconds.

"Exactly how much trouble am I getting in for bringing the famous Judy Hopps home in this condition?" he asked, laughing as Judy pulled away and spun in a circle several times, before falling with her legs under her. "This can't possibly help my reputation around here."

Judy cocked her head and appeared lost in thought briefly before answering. "Probably will help your reputation. Any bunny whosh sober after a funeral is being too serious and kinda weird…I should know. Espeth…espesha…mostly the people who know me will be happy to see me having fun, even if it's with a shady, lowlife…"

"And there went the goodwill." Nick knelt down and smiled as Judy struggled to get her paws under her. "I've half a mind to let you drag your own tail back home."

Judy looked horrified at that idea briefly, but then grabbed both sides of his face and pulled him nose-to-nose with her. "You…wouldn't…dare."

"Try me, Fluff."

To Nick's surprise, Judy licked his nose and began giggling again. She then slid both paws under herself, trying to get up, only to overbalance and fall into his arms.

"This is just embarrassing," he told her, smiling as she hugged him. "ZPD's finest right here."

Judy planted her face in his shirt and shook her head, which tickled. "Off-duty. Didn' even bring mah badge."

They stood there together for a short time before Judy sat back down hard, wincing as she glared at her dirt-coated hind paws.

"You okay?" Nick asked, sitting down on the ground beside her.

"My paws hurt," she admitted to him, wiggling her toes. "Haven't danced that long in years."

"If I can make them better, you promise to try to walk on your own?"

Judy's dazed expression snapped to full and clear attention at that, looking up at him quizzically. "What?"

"I'm offering you a paw rub. One time offer, dependent entirely on you not telling people I'm being nice. Besides, it'll give me a break from trying to carry you."

Judy did not hesitate and adjusted on her tail, planting both large feet in his lap. "If you tickle me, I'll scream and maybe kick."

"No promises there," he replied, taking one paw into his hands and working his finger pads into the swollen muscles there. Nick had not realized just how much muscle Judy had in her legs and feet until then, but it made sense given the way she could run and jump. "These are seriously angry, Fluff. Do you kick brick walls for fun? I don't think there's a single spot on your foot that isn't swollen."

Judy squeaked a little, letting Nick know he had found a particularly sensitive spot. He worked on that until she relaxed, lying back on the ground and staring up at the stars overhead.

"Do you do this for all your dates?" she asked absently a few minutes later, before he was about to switch to her other paw.

"Only the ones I like," admitted Nick, hoping that she heard that as a sarcastic lie. She did not need to know that this was already more romantic than his rare dates actually managed to get. "The rest, not so much. Is that helping a little?"

"Mmmmm," was the only reply he got, which he took to be a good thing.

"Do you think you can walk now?"

Judy lifted her head a little and stared down the length of her body at him. Letting her head flop back with a flap of her ears, she murmured, "Doubtful. Way too relaxed now. More paw rubs required."

Sighing, Nick gave up on trying to find a way to get her to carry herself. He instead scooped her up in his arms, which got him an excited, "whee" in reply.

"How many drinks did you have?" he asked, trying to keep his own balance as he crossed the field. Nick was far from sober himself and with a squirming bunny in his arms, he was lucky he did not injure them both. "I know I had a lot, but you bunnies make some seriously strong wine."

Judy nuzzled at Nick's neck, instantly distracting him and he tripped a little, which she seemed not to notice. Holding up one paw, she extended all four fingers. "This many!"

"Well, that's a lie," Nick said mostly to himself. "I think you were tipsy after my scotch. Then there was the wine from the first run, another glass after we danced, I think I saw the bartender give you another glass for free, then the shots…which, by the way, you do not need to try to prove you can drink more than I can."

Grinning again, Judy pawed at Nick's whiskers playfully. The action should have been annoying, but somehow he found it more than a little endearing, making his ears heat up a little. He tried to think of whether anyone had ever done that before and he could not say that there was anyone. It was an odd sensation.

"Trying to pay attention to my footing here," he reminded his ward, but she had begun tracing the lines on his neck where his red and white fur came together with a claw tip. "That's reeeally not helping, Judy."

"It's really working for me."

"What?"

Judy gazed up at him with those wide violet eyes. "What?"

"What'd you just say?"

"This many glasses?"

Grumbling to himself, Nick gave up. He could see the burrow in the distance. Another few minutes and he would have her tucked into bed and would try to get some sleep himself. With the only train mid-week leaving shortly after noon, he would have to be awake at a truly unreasonable hour if he was going to make the hike to the station in time. Missing that train would mean missing work the next day and if that happened, Bogo would have his tail over a fire. As it was, he was guessing that he had only about six hours before he would have to be awake. Seven if he was willing to forego cleaning up, which was not ideal after a whole evening dancing and drinking.

At long last, Nick reached the entrance to the Hopps burrow and set Judy down gingerly on her paws. She wavered, but managed to stay upright by leaning on the stone wall of the home's entrance.

"Sounds like everyone's either still out or gone to bed," he announced a moment later, after pressing his ear to the door. "We might get lucky and get you all the way to your room without any questions."

Judy snorted and held out her arms to be carried again. "Told you. Nothing wrong with coming home drunk today."

Without even considering objecting, Nick picked Judy up in his arms and she settled with her head against his other shoulder. "Nothing wrong with being drunk, but I'm guessing coming home drunk with a fox won't be quite the same."

Nick eased open the door and slipped into the burrow as quietly as he could, given the difficulty of doing so with a passenger.

"Don't care what they think," Judy murmured, this time using her claw to trace the white fur of his neck the other direction down into his collar. When he shivered, she grinned up at him. Slowly the grin faded and she sounded far more serious. "I'm just a dumb bunny and they'll forgive me. Family has to forgive. Even if it's 'cause of a fox."

"Carrots, I doubt you'll remember half of what I say at this point and I'm kind of counting on that." Nick lowered his voice as he skirted the kitchen area, where faint sounds of conversation made their way to him. Once he was closer to the first flight of stairs, he continued. "You're the least dumb bunny I've ever met. Please don't ever call yourself that in a serious way again. I don't want you to have to get forgiveness from your family because of me. You deserve better than having to argue for why I'm around."

Judy remained quiet as they passed through the second and third floors of the burrow, where Nick could hear bunnies talking in many of the rooms. Several, he was certain he heard sounds far more intimate than that and could smell bunnies that he knew were new arrivals to the burrow, but he stopped paying attention on purpose and sped up his pace.

"Why did it have to be bunnies?" he asked himself, nearing the stairs down to their floor. "I'm so bad at dealing with cuddly and affectionate species. Bunnies are the worst."

"They say foxes are the worst, too, but for other things," Judy told him, her eyes locked onto his face. It was starting to make him self-conscious. "I don't hold it agains' you."

Nick whined softly and stopped a few feet from their room. "I don't hold anything against you, Carrots. Ever. I just talk big and complain a lot. Also hoping you don't remember that."

That seemed to cheer her up a little, giving Nick the break he needed to finish his walk of shame back to the room. Just as he reached the door, he heard voices coming down the stairs and he had to frantically grab for the handle to get them inside before they were seen. Judy smiled through the whole affair, thankfully keeping quiet until Nick got the door closed behind them.

Easing Judy down onto the edge of her bed, Nick knelt in front of her, trying to gauge how drunk she might still be. Almost immediately, her eyes drifted aimlessly around the room and she fell over backward onto the bed with another giggle.

"I am in so much trouble," Nick told himself, trying to keep his eyes on the floor when Judy's skirt shifted a bit less modestly than he guessed she would have liked. "Okay, Carrots, can you get yourself ready for bed or do you want to sleep in your dress?"

Judy waved dismissively at Nick and pulled the shirt and shorts she had worn the previous night from under her pillow. Just as Nick thought she was going to get up and head out of the room, she sat up and instead began unbuttoning the back of her dress.

"Whoa, whoa!" he hissed, grabbing her paws to stop her. Reflexively, he glanced back at the door to be sure he had closed it. "I should definitely have stopped you three shots ago. At least let me turn around first."

Judy nodded and waited patiently, tapping her toes on the floor until Nick had gotten up and turned his back.

For two long minutes, Nick felt as though the world's turning had slowed to a crawl. All he could do was stare at the wall as he listened to Judy slipping out of her dress and fumbling her way through putting on her night clothes. He knew he should be changing, too, or at least trying to settle down on the awful floor mattress, but he could not make any inch of his body move.

After an eternity of faint movement behind him, Judy finally called out softly, "It's okay now. No scary bunny to see."

Nick laughed at that, turning back around to find Judy curled up under her blankets with just her head and ears sticking out. She looked absolutely miserable and was watching the door, rather than him. He knew that look all too well…she was trying to convince herself not to cry.

"What's wrong, Fluff?" he asked, moving quickly to the side of her bed. He almost fell when he tried to take a knee, reminding himself the hard way that he was only a little more sober than she was, but apparently more used to dealing with it. "Did I say something mean and not even notice?"

Judy shook her head and finally turned her attention back to him. As usual, those eyes melted him instantly and he had a hard time focusing on anything else.

"Nick," she said softly, fidgeting under the blankets. "You're sleeping on the floor, right?"

The question sounded actually worried, though Nick could not imagine why. All he could think of was that she was afraid he was a bit too drunk to cuddle safely. "Yeah. After last night, figured you could sleep better if I wasn't pawing at you in my sleep."

Judy smirked and rolled her eyes. "I'd sleep better if you were here, pawing or not. I liked having your arm there to reassure me when I woke up."

Nick's heart skipped more than one beat and his mouth and nose felt drier than he could remember them ever having been. "I'm not sure that's a good idea, Judy."

Sliding to the edge of the bed, Judy put her nose near his and gave him the single most pitiful stare he had ever seen. She had been practicing that look, if he had to wager. "I'm thinking it is. Same rules as before. Or don't you trust a scary little bunny?"

Nick found himself breathing a little faster than he was comfortable with. Forcing his breathing and heart rate back down, he gave her a small kiss on the forehead to get her to stop staring at him like he was destroying her whole world. "Roll over or close your eyes or something. I need to get changed, too."

Grinning again—a clear sign the miserable stare had been part of a game for her—Judy flopped on her other side and pulled her ears over her eyes.

Getting up, Nick went over to the small mattress where his clothes from the previous day still lay in a wadded ball. He began stripping off his shirt and was halfway through getting his pants off when he heard the bed creak behind him.

"Carrots?"

"Hrm?"

"Please tell me you're not staring at my tail while I undress."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Nick. Hurry up."

Casting aside his pants, Nick felt oddly more naked than he had the previous night, despite still wearing boxers. Glancing over his shoulder, he found that he had heard correctly. Judy was lying facing him, though she made a show of keeping her ears over her eyes…mostly.

"Hah hah," he muttered, turning out the light and climbing onto the bed beside her. Deciding against pushing his luck, Nick opted to stay atop the covers, while she was beneath. "Make the sketchy fox feel self-conscious. Fun game."

Judy rolled over to face him, burying her nose under his chin, silencing his objections. She said nothing further, clinging with both paws to his chest fur as though afraid he might escape.

Nick held his breath for a short time, unsure what to make of the situation. Slowly, he relaxed into the cuddling and had to admit—at least in the safety of his own mind—that this was more than he could have ever hoped for.

"Sly bunny," he whispered near her ear and put his arms around her. Within a minute, they were both asleep.


	12. Chapter 3-5

**The Pursuit, Chapter 3.5 – Pushing Boundaries**

 **June 15** **th** **, Wednesday Morning – Leaving Bunnyburrow**

Judy woke up exactly how she had hoped she would, in Nick's arms. During the night, they had shifted in their sleep and she had managed to slip the covers over him, letting her cuddle more closely. She still felt dizzy from drinking, but the simplicity of being in her best friend's arms more than made up for any silliness she had engaged in hours earlier.

Snuggling a little closer, Judy rubbed her nose in the fur under Nick's chin, eliciting a faint purr. He was not so hopeless of a cuddler, after all. She was happy and content, knowing that if anyone in the world was mature enough to be able to move on from a night of friendly cuddles, it was probably Nick. She nuzzled him again, barely noticing that she had one leg draped over his waist as she smoothed his chest fur.

Then, everything got weird and Judy realized she had no one to blame but herself, when she realized where her leg was.

His eyes still closed, Nick bent slightly and kissed Judy's cheek. She choked a little in surprise, but actually wanted him to do it again. The gesture was simply so out of place for him that she was actually encouraged to hug him a little tighter. When she did, Nick began breathing near one of her ears, which was something she had not realized she liked…a lot. Biting her cheek to keep from making a sound, Judy started to reposition herself away, only to have Nick lick the edge of her ear, making her shiver and triggering her to reposition even closer to him.

 _How can he figure out what I like when he isn't even awake?_ she demanded silently in her head, biting down a whimper when Nick began licking her face tenderly. _This isn't even a little bit fair!_

That was when Judy realized that her leg was across Nick, as he pulled her closer and she felt him press up against her. There was no doubt that he was enjoying the situation judging by the pressure against her shorts, but she had to assume he would panic the moment he woke up and realized he was doing that to her—to his friend and partner.

"Nick," she managed to whisper, but caught her breath as he rolled her onto her back. "I'm really really not objecting…but wake up, Nick."

Blinking slowly as he pressed himself against her, Nick seemed to not entirely understand what was going on. Smiling absently, he bent down and nibbled at the base of her neck, while his fingers started to slide aside part of her shorts.

The sensation of being gently bitten—possibly despite him being a predator or possibly because he was—was exhilarating and Judy found herself not really caring to jar him awake anymore. Instead, she pressed her hips back against his without really thinking about it, feeling him take that as a cue to keep going. His paw moved up and slipped under her shirt, even as she could feel him adjusting to slide down his shorts…

"Carrots?" gasped Nick, as everything stopped instantly, his eyes snapping open and focusing. "I'm actually awake and not imagining, aren't I? Oh my god…"

Judy panicked and hooked her arms under his and wrapped her legs around the back of his hips, her paws clamped against his tail. Nick tried to pull away and only managed to lift her off the bed. "Nick, I can explain everything."

They lay like that for a minute, until Nick's fearful stare faded to a bit of curiosity. "Well?"

"Okay, maybe I can't," she admitted, though he had yet to remove his hand from her shirt and the firm pressure at their hips let her know he was still very interested. "I think we both kind of woke up…you know…lonely?"

Nick flinched and hurriedly slid his hand out from under her shirt and used it to balance himself as he remained on all fours. When she did not let go, he finally lowered himself enough that she was no longer hanging above the bed. "I could have hurt you, Judy. We don't know…"

"I know you wouldn't ever hurt me on purpose," she assured him, running her fingers through his facial fur. "I'm not afraid, if you…if you want…"

Nick appeared torn and a little frantic. When he moved his hips to adjust his weight, a clear expression of longing passed over his features before he clenched his jaw and shook his head. "Not after drinking, Judy. Not like this. Accidentally hurting you is just as bad as doing it on purpose. Doing it while drunk would be among the worst ideas ever."

"I'm sober…mostly," she quickly told him. Taking his wrists in her paws, Judy spread Nick's arms, forcing him off-balance so that he had to lie down atop her again. "We're two adults. Say 'no' if you don't want to, but if you are willing, I'd like to try. You aren't going to hurt me. I promise to warn you if it starts to."

Nick scowled at her and at her grip on his wrists. With a slightly feral growl, he pulled free and flipped her onto her stomach so that her legs could no longer hold him and immediately pinned her arms to the bed over her head so that she could not fight, bringing his weight down on her back. "No, Judy. I'm not going to be some fox that takes advantage of a drunk bunny. I'm not that mammal."

Judy bit into the pillow under her face, trying not to whimper. Having him atop her with her arms pinned and his groin pressed against her tail was not making anything better. If anything, she wanted him even more. The rattle in Nick's breath near her ear let her know that she was not alone and he had realized that he had not improved the situation any. It was taking all of Judy's willpower not to rock her hips against his and see if he reacted more favorably.

"Okay, fine," she relented, though it physically hurt to change her mind with him still on her. "I won't push it. I was wrong, Nick. That wasn't fair to you."

Nick eased his grip on her and lifted slightly off her hips. "I…I'm sorry, Judy. Right now the answer is 'no', but that's just because I'm scared and with all the drinking…maybe if we went a little slower, but I'm terrified I might hurt you by accident. Let's talk about this again when we get back and there's a chance…"

A click at the room's door set Judy into absolute terror. Glancing across the room at the clock, she saw that it was late enough that her parents were likely wondering if Nick would be able to make it to the train in time.

Sure enough, her father's voice bellowed as he entered the room, "Jude! Time for…oh sweet cheese and crackers."

Judy could only imagine what her father thought he was seeing. She was face-down on her bed with a fox atop her and her father could not even see everything. At best, he might be able to see her legs sticking out from under Nick, who was hurriedly trying to disentangle himself.

"Dad!" Judy yelled, trying to get out herself turned in a hurry so she could look her father in the eye. "It's not…!"

A deafening buzz echoed through the room and Nick flopped face-down beside Judy. When she looked at him, smoke rose from a large burn across his back near his left hip. Turning the other way, she saw that her father was holding a similarly-steaming fox taser.

"Dammit dad," Judy groaned, thumping her face into her pillow.

"Are you all right, hon?" Stu demanded, rushing to her side.

"Ask questions first, then taser," she told him, sighing as she sat up. Beside her, Nick twitched uncontrollably. "He wasn't attacking me, dad."

"Then what…oh…were you…?"

"Nothing happened!" Judy snapped, grabbing the taser from her father's paw. "How high was that set? You melted his fur. You could have killed him."

Stu shrugged and flipped the taser over in her paw and pointed to a dial. "It's got three settings. The goat at the store said to keep it on this one."

The lowest setting showed a line art picture of a fox surrounded by lightning. The second depicted a fox on the ground with smoke rising off it. The third—the setting her father had it set to—had a picture of a fox skull on a gravestone.

"Oh, Nick!" Judy yelped, sliding across the bed to roll Nick over so she could check his pulse. As soon she moved him, he flopped, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.

"Noooooooo!" she howled, planting her ear to his chest. A faint heartbeat was audible and she could hear his rattling breath. When she sat up, Nick's eyes moved very slowly to look at her, though it appeared that he could not blink or do much more than breathe in shallow wheezes.

"All right, dad," Judy practically growled, clutching Nick's paw in hers. "Let's start from the top. What's the first rule in this burrow that you taught me when I was six?"

"Knock first."

"Second rule?"

"No grandkids unless you're a reasonable age, but after that all bets are off. Just don't make them in a public part of the burrow."

Judy nodded slowly, taking a shuddering breath to calm herself. "I want to add a new one. No killing our guests, even if you think they're breaking rule number two and especially if you broke rule number one to find that out."

"But Jude…" her father stammered, rubbing his hands nervously together. "I saw what he…he was…and you were…"

"You just tased my best friend for something I instigated." The words came out easier than she had expected and a low wheezing whine from Nick let her know that he could at least hear her and probably wanted to take the blame himself. "When he can move again, I want a very convincing apology…"

"Jude…"

" _Very_ convincing," she reiterated, squeezing Nick's paw. With her other paw, she smoothed some of his fur that was still standing on end, getting tiny shocks through her finger pads. "If he's actually hurt…I don't know that I'll be coming home anytime soon."

"Judy, how can you…?"

Wiping tears off her cheeks, Judy turned on her father angrily. "How can I not threaten that? If my friends are in danger here, I feel threatened here. I'll talk to you in a bit, once I know if he's going to be okay. For now, please leave us alone."

Stu got up slowly from the edge of the bed, opening and closing his mouth as if he were trying to find the right words to properly apologize to her—though Judy noted he did not look once at Nick that way. He wanted her to forgive him, not Nick.

"Close the door on your way out," added Judy, turning her back on her father to better watch Nick. A moment later the door clicked shut.

"Worst ending to a date ever," she mused, smiling sadly as she smoothed more of Nick's fur. "Good news is that since you're still alive, you should recover. Brain damage is pretty rare. Maybe a half hour to an hour before you'll be able to stand again."

Nick squeaked faintly and his eyes moved just enough to look directly at her.

"I'm sorry," Judy offered helplessly, squeezing his paw again. Kissing his cheek, she rephrased. "Worst ending to a wonderful date. The things you put up with…"

Nick managed a faint wheezing chuckle and rolled his eyes slowly.

Smiling sadly, Judy turned Nick's face a little so they were looking in each other's eyes without him having to look out the corner of his eyes. "Serves you right, though. Being all nice last night, especially with the paw rubs. That's how you end up with an interested bunny, in case you weren't aware…and a taser on your tail."

The ensuring cough from Nick sounded as though he were trying to laugh.

An hour later, Judy had packed up most of Nick's things as he had slowly recovered. It had taken almost ten minutes before he could blink and the sigh of relief when he could had been tremendous. At a half hour, he had stopped steaming and very slowly curled into an uncomfortable-looking ball of misery. By the hour mark, Nick dragged himself carefully off the bed and collapsed, before getting his muscles to react well enough that he could stand.

"You have one of those…those tasers, too?" he gasped, his voice hoarse.

"Absolutely," Judy replied, setting his suitcase upright alongside the pile of blankets from the floor mattress they had not used. "Remember that when you're giving me a hard time."

Nick laughed weakly as he pulled on his pants and shirt. For once, he seemed to have forgotten his tie, so Judy slid that into his suitcase.

"Any chance of me making the train?" he asked, sitting down hard on the floor beside the bed. "I don't really know how long I was out and now I feel like I've got the worst hangover ever."

Judy nodded and slid over beside him, barely even aware that she was still in her night clothes. Somehow, the morning's events had made that entirely irrelevant. "We'll take my parents' truck. Amazing how fast I can sober up when my parents try to kill guests. By now, dad's told all my siblings what he saw…so I don't expect a big turnout for saying goodbyes."

"What? Bunnies don't like to give heartfelt hugs and smoochies to creepy sister-molesting predators that they didn't want in their home to begin with?"

Judy wanted to punch him, but he was not entirely wrong in how he was likely perceived. "I'll talk to them tonight. You didn't do anything wrong. If they want to hate someone for this, I'll make sure they know it's me they need to blame."

Thumping the back of his head against the bedframe, Nick reached over and grabbed Judy's face to turn it toward him. "Let me take the blame. It's easier. They don't know me and they don't want to. Don't make this into a family feud when it's easier to say that I got carried away."

"I will fight for this, if you want me to," Judy found herself saying, though her voice got far quieter than she had intended. "I was the one that got carried away and I don't want you hating me for…well…it's not your fault."

Nick shivered very slightly and put on one of his fake smiles. He was hiding his feelings from her again. "Don't worry yourself, Fluff. So long as I'm not losing my partner, I should be flattered, right? Not that big of a deal. You said it yourself last night. No commitments, no worries."

Judy nodded weakly, not really able to look him in the eye. Something had changed in that singular moment for her, simply by having him decide not to push the issue. It was who he was and who she loved him for being, but ultimately, it meant that she would never know how he truly felt about that mutual mistake that morning or whether she had actually gone too far.

"I'll go change and get the truck," she offered, trying to hide the disappointment and touch of shame from her voice. Despite her efforts, she could not make her ears perk. Each glance his way made her feel all the more crushed. "You can meet me out front in about twenty minutes, if that works."

A hint of fear and uncertainty was creeping across Nick's face, but he shook that off almost immediately. "Sure thing. You sure you're going to be okay for the rest of the week without me?"

Judy smiled sadly, trying to get herself moving before she questioned her choices or blurted out something she was not ready to admit. "Of course, Nick. Now it's just spending time with the family until it's time to come home."

His machismo fading quickly, Nick asked more warily. "Do you mind if I text you Sunday when you get in? Maybe we can do pizza or something. Nothing big. Definitely no pressure."

The full enormity of the morning finally hitting her, causing her to be unable to speak without fear of her voice cracking, Judy shrugged as she slipped from the room. Wiping at her tears, she hurried for the bathroom to change. Nick was intentionally shifting everything back to normal, ignoring what had happened. That told her all she needed to know about his take on the situation.

 _Another person that doesn't want me_ , she thought to herself, trying not to completely break down. _This one's completely my fault. I pushed too hard and scared him off. My best friend in the whole world and I had to push for more than he wanted. I…I don't even know if we could have worked, but I hate feeling like this…_

Burying her face in her hands, Judy cried harder than she had in years, curling into a ball in the corner of the shower. She had taken a risk and possibly lost the only person in Zootopia that she truly adored and could not imagine living without. Now, even the simple friendship would feel strained. She would have to work twice as hard this time to make up for scaring Nick if she was going to keep him as a friend. Likely, she would have to put some distance between herself and what had happened if he was going to be willing to go back to how things were. For now, she needed to get the misery out of her system in a huge hurry if she was going to hide how disappointed she was while driving Nick back to the train.


	13. Chapter 4-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 4.1**

 **June 18** **th** **, Saturday Night – Slo Does Bar**

Nick practically collapsed into the booth across from Finnick, dropping his cell phone on the table before flopping forward to rest his face on the cool wood. The sound of a can of cheap beer being slid over beside his face was a welcome relief, though reaching up to take it sounded like a lot of extra work.

"You look like crap, Nick," Finnick rumbled in his deep baritone after a minute. "Shouldn't you have been sleeping all day or somethin'?"

"No," Nick mumbled into the table. "I agreed to work today. I've been up…I don't know…all the hours. Big case down in the Canal District that apparently no one could manage to close without me. I swear, they blundered in there and scared everyone off and now want me to clean up the mess. Chasing down some old…bah, it's stupid cop work is all you care about."

Finnick's laughter made Nick scowl, but the expression was lost on the stained wood of the table.

"I always thought you'd get whipped by a girl, not a job, Nicholas."

"Don't call me Nicholas, Finn," implored Nick, tapping his forehead on the table once more for good measure before sitting up and taking the can of beer. "My mom calls me that when she wants to treat me like a kit. It's weird coming from you. You're what, a year younger?"

"Your mom?" the smaller fox asked, chuckling. "What mom? Pretty sure you had me lie to the ZPD about her bein' my mom. Don' even want to know why that is or how they think I look anything like her. Am I supposed to be adopted or something?"

Nick snorted and then opened the beer, but could not quite find the energy to drink it yet. "You know why. So long as I'm paying for her place out of all our hustling money, she's in danger of losing everything if Internal Affairs finds out where I hid the cash. I paid up on my taxes for what they could pin on me. I'm not about to put her at risk."

"Always the good momma's boy," Finnick told him, grinning at his own comments. "Why you taking so long to get on your paws, Nick? She's been askin' about when you'll come by. Heck, I've been wondering the same thing. I've loved your momma since she took me in, but I ain't you to her. Been what…four months?"

"Six." Nick did feel guilty about the time passing, but it was beyond his control. "Working pretty long hours and the few weekends I wasn't doing some kind of extra training, I had ZIA on my tail. Couldn't lead them back to you two."

"Always thinkin' of others. That's my Nick."

Nick glowered at his friend, getting a toothy grin in reply.

"Still crazy to be workin' on a weekend with a real job," Finnick muttered after a minute. He held up a paw to stop Nick from replying when the waitress came by and Nick tried to ignore his friend's efforts to stuff a few dollars in the coyote's shirt. Thankfully, Finnick was short enough that she escaped before the fox could do anything that Nick would be obligated to arrest him for. "What you lookin' at, Nick? Nothin' new in what I'm doing. Besides, coyotes think I'm adorable. You gotta use what you got."

Nick could not argue that. Finnick had a reputation among the coyotes that visited their regular dive bars. Without thinking too hard, Nick could tally up at least eight that Finnick had managed to talk into a ride in his van…which usually was their code phrase for Nick needing to make himself scarce. Abruptly, Nick realized that Finnick had probably chosen the new bar that night because he had already met everyone that visited their old bars.

"I had to work because I took a few days off this week to take care of some personal matters," Nick offered, hoping that would be enough to distract Finnick. Sipping his beer, he looked up and saw a stern glare directed back at him and knew that he was not in luck.

"You gotta do better than that," Finnick grumbled, crossing his little arms. "You ain't got any personal matters, unless you got a girl on the side I don't know about. Given your tastes, doubting that's it."

"Hey now. Don't go there. I could have someone…"

Finnick leaned onto the table. "Nick, if I ain't going there, no one will. I know you. How many years we been running around this town?"

"Too many."

"Around twenty," Finnick corrected, thumping one fist on the table. "I know you ain't got a girl. How do I know that? I know it because you've struck out with all of them."

"All of them? That sounds pretty much like the death knell in my dating career."

"Career?" Finnick slapped his thigh and shook his head, laughing. "How many vixens you struck out with, Nick?"

"Couple every year and one or two years I didn't meet any. It's not like there's foxes on every block. Don't really keep count."

"I do, brother. Sixty. That's how many times 'she just wasn't right.' Just under sixty times you struck out either before or after the first date. The rest…those you just messed up and they got bored. Don't even wanna know what you did wrong. Two of those tried to hook up with me to get revenge. You're lucky I like you."

"Let's talk about something else."

Finnick leaned farther forward. He had found something that got to Nick, so he was not about to let it go until he had made his point. "How many vixen you think there are in this city, Nick?"

Nick shrugged and sipped his beer. "I suppose you can tell me?"

"I can." Finnick began tallying with his fingers, though the numbers he was quoting did not match anything Nick saw him tapping out. "Four million mammals in Zootopia. Predators are less than ten percent of that, so four hundred thousand. Of those, less than half of one percent are foxes. Two thousand foxes in a city this big."

"Sounds like my odds are pretty good, if I've only insulted about sixty. When did you learn to math, Finn?"

"Pay attention and you taught me. Two thousand total foxes. Half that are vixens. That's a thousand. Halve it again for the ones you ain't getting' arrested for bein' with or having to provide a walker on your dates. Five hundred. Of those, maybe a quarter are not already married or at least not lookin' to find a fox on the side—and I know you ain't wanting to be the fox on the side. That's one hundred twenty-five vixens in the whole city and you already pissed off half of them. You wanna talk about your odds again? Want me to get out a phone book and start crossin' out names? Could be fun."

Nick kept his mouth shut that time and stared at his beer.

"There's a reason I go after coyotes," Finnick told him, sounding smug. "Lot more of them. Less mammals distrust them."

"If you're telling me to start dating coyotes…"

"Nah, I know that ain't your thing, Nick. I'm sayin' you're being too picky. You're killin' yourself trying to find somethin' that just ain't out there. I mean…look at that…"

Nick looked up, trying to follow Finnick's finger, but he saw nothing more than a wolf hustling a group of tigers at pool. Turning back to the table, he realized that Finnick had taken his cell phone and was tapping at the screen. A simple misdirect that Nick had taught him, though usually it was used to steal a wallet.

"Hey, give that back," Nick demanded, holding out a paw. Finnick ignored him. "Give it. You don't even know my password."

A loud click came from the phone as it unlocked.

"You so predictable, Nick," the smaller fox told him, tapping away with the phone turned so Nick could not see it. "Mom's birthday. Who didn' see that comin'? Let's see what you've been up to."

Sighing, Nick sipped his beer again. He was a little impressed Finnick had figured out the password that fast, but there was nothing visible on the phone that he could imagine being overly useful even for blackmail. At worst, one might be able to figure out that he worked at the ZPD.

"Wow, real clean phone," Finnick was saying, sliding his finger across as he navigated through the files on the phone. "Not like my Nick. Not one picture. You had this thing a year and ain't no clutter at all."

Nick smiled at his friend. "Gotta keep my image clean for the ZPD. No more random selfies."

Shaking his head—making his huge ears flop a little—Finnick answered, "Nah, you know what I mean, Nick. No porn on here at all. I been looking at your phones for years to know what you're into. Why you think I set you up with that vixen with the leather fetish?"

Nick's humor drained away and he knew he was wide-eyed. "You search my phones for porn?"

"I search everyone's phone for porn," Finnick amended, grinning. "Tells ya a lot about someone when you know what gets their tail in a bunch. Hey, will ya look there? Hidden folders. Dumped everything you were hidin' in one place."

Panic set in before Nick even heard all the words Finnick had said and he scrambled over the table, grabbing for his phone. To his surprise, Finnick popped him on the tip of the nose with his own phone, forcing him back to his side of the booth.

"Yeah, this is the Nick I remember," Finnick went on, swiping through pictures that Nick dreaded hearing about. He honestly could not remember what all might be on the phone and had meant to delete everything at some point. "Oh, that's something new. Is there even a name for this one? What's with you and the weird stuff?"

"I…is it really that weird?" Nick asked, making another snatch for the phone, but Finnick caught him with his claws, leaving welts on the back of Nick's paw. "It's just some random stuff from Moogle…"

"Nicky, Nicky." Finnick shook his head sadly after stopping on one picture. "I don't even know what to say about this one. I'm not even sure that's possible. Is that two…nah, that's three vixens. There's gotta be toys involved. Nobody bends like that. Your mama would be so mad if she found this. Sooo mad if someone forwarded her copies of what you have on here, though pretty funny if I did it from your own email address."

Dread set in and Nick's ears sank as he tried to guess at what his friend was finding on his phone.

"Lemme see here," Finnick went on, leaning forward. "Five months ago, you stopped downloading all this crap."

Nick lifted his gaze from the table and gestured desperately for his phone. So long as Finnick did not dig any deeper… "The police academy. I wasn't exactly going to be downloading porn at school. You've embarrassed me enough."

Finnick was entirely ignoring him. "Nah, Nick…I said you stopped downloading that crap. Didn't say you stopped downloading other crap. What's with this newer stuff? I'm really kinda worried about you."

Turning the phone around, Finnick showed him a lingerie-clad Playbunny image, the bunny's ears covering parts of her body where the lingerie had "slipped."

Nick wanted to die. He wanted something large and heavy to fall on him and put him out of his misery, but Finnick just turned the phone back and kept flicking through. To Nick's surprise, his beer was empty already and he desperately felt like he was going to need more, if not something stronger. Waving frantically at one of the waitresses, Nick tried to get her attention to no avail.

"What is this shit?" Finnick went on, his muzzle twisting a little in confusion. "Bunny, bunny, bunny…ok, that one's pretty hot no matter the species…bunny, bunny…dammit, Nick. Did you really fall for her?"

"No, that's not it at all," Nick snapped, still waving without success to flag down the waitress. "She's my partner. I got…curious."

"Damn, Nick, you need to get laid in a serious way if working with someone makes you that curious. Besides, a lotta these are really recent." Finnick shook his head and tapped the screen a few more times. "Okay, okay…bear with me here, brother. See if you get what I'm sayin'."

Nick turned his attention back to Finnick reluctantly.

"Kinky vixen shit," the smaller fox said, showing a random picture to Nick. Flicking to one side, "Softcore bunny shit."

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up."

"Kinky…" *flick* "…bunny…" *flick* "…kinky…" *flick* "…bunny…" *flick* "…kinky…" *flick* "…kinky bunny…"

"I get the point, Finnick."

"Nah, I don't think you do, Nick," Finnick answered, tossing the cracked phone across the table to Nick. "You're whipped and you ain't even got a chance with her, the way you're handling things. That breaks my heart. This ain't happening. We both know it. We shoulda been talkin' about this before you got in this deep."

Nick nodded sadly without even realizing how depressed he was getting about the idea that he was wasting his time. Deep down, he knew that to be the truth after how things had ended in Bunnyburrow. Judy had made it clear that she was looking for fun, but not anything serious. Given the way Nick fell hard if he did fall for someone, he knew he could not go along with what she wanted. It was better to push her away, no matter how that hurt.

"Cut you a deal, Nicky. You still can bet, right?"

"I'm probably not supposed to, but sure."

Leaning forward across the table—standing on his side of the booth—Finnick lowered his voice. "Tell you what. You get two choices and one rule regardless of which you pick. No arguing. I wanna see you stop moping. First, I hook you up one last time. You take it seriously and give her a chance, even if it's not really your usual thing. Second, you go tell the bunny what you feel and let her rip your heart out…then you come back and we double back on my other option when she freaks out about a fox askin' her that."

"That's…fair," Nick admitted, smiling half-heartedly. "I think I've already blown it on the second. I'll probably have to take you up on the first. What's the one rule?"

Finnick snapped his fingers and one of the waitresses that Nick had not seen before wandered their way, though Nick tried to keep his attention on Finnick. From the corner of his eye, all he noted was black fur. Likely a panther or other cat.

"You go see your momma," Finnick added, sitting down, though that put his eyes only a little above the tabletop. "She's worried about you. Don't make up your mind on which choice to take. Talk to your mom. She's a lot better listener than you pretend."

"Please tell me you haven't been talking to my mother about your girlfriends, Finn."

Finnick grinned slyly, but did not answer that question. "Them's the rules, Nick. Take it or leave it. If you leave it, I'm done helping you."

Sighing, Nick nodded.

"Good choice. Nick, I want you to meet Silvia," Finnick told him, gesturing to the waitress. "Been tellin' her all about you, but you never came by."

Looking up, Nick was surprised to see that the waitress Finnick had somehow summoned was a silver fox. She smirked at him when he clicked his jaw shut and bent down over the table, putting both elbows on it so that she could talk more easily with both of them.

"So you're the famous fox cop?" Silvia asked coyly, her gray and black patterning blending together more subtly than the distinct patterns that most foxes had. Nick had to admit to himself that he had always been a bit entranced by silvers, though Silvia was the first he had seen in Zootopia. "You don't look like anything special. We don't get a lot of cops in here, though, so that's a bit special on its own."

Finnick started talking, but Silvia kept her golden eyes on Nick. "That's him. Another round for me and my boy, Nick. Trying to show him a good time before the ZPD spoils him forever."

Silvia smiled a little more broadly, revealing bright white fangs. Nodding, she put down two coasters in front of them and turned to go fetch their drinks, her fluffy tail brushing Nick's leg quite deliberately. Given how careful foxes were with their tails, that simple brush was significant and more flirtatious than Nick was used to. After a few steps, she glanced over her shoulder at him and then looked away.

"I…well…" Nick stammered, trying to find words for the gorgeous creature that had just walked away. "I didn't expect that."

Finnick chortled and reached across the table, tapping the coaster in front of Nick.

Looking down, Nick saw that the coaster had a phone number written on it. Picking it up slowly, he saw that Silvia was behind the bar, watching him with another coy smile.

"You got a day or two max before she loses interest, Nick," Finnick told him firmly. "Make up your mind before then. And go see your momma. I'm sick of makin' excuses for you."


	14. Chapter 4-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 4.2 – Mistakes Were Made**

 **June 19** **th** **, Sunday Morning – Vulpine Estates Independent Living**

Making his way into the large condo complex, Nick felt more self-conscious than he had in months. He had dressed up in his nicest slacks, shirt, and tie, hoping that anyone who might be watching for him might not quite make the connection if he changed up his look. To his slight relief, the employees of the facility had to ask several times who he was there to see and make phone calls to be certain that he was allowed past the lobby.

After the staff had verified that Nick's mother knew who he was and wanted him to come up, he made his way through the quiet halls, until at last he reached her condo. The place was worlds better than either his or Judy's places, which had been the idea. When his mother had gotten sick the year prior, Finnick and Nick had worked tirelessly to ensure that she would have better than what they had grown up with. The sickness had weakened her severely—to the point that at the time, there had been some question of her even surviving—and the Vulpine Estates had been one of the few choices left to ensure that medical care was on-hand if things took another turn for the worse. Thankfully, she had recovered almost completely and now there was simply no reason to move her back into a lower quality of living, aside from money, which Nick was proud to say was not an issue.

"Hello?" Nick called out, opening the door to the condo and letting himself in. "Mom?"

A click of a cane let Nick know his mother was making her way toward the front of the condo and she soon came into sight, her red fur contrasting the purples and pinks she normally preferred to wear. She had lost a lot of weight since the last time he had been able to visit and that made Nick feel even worse about himself, though at least she seemed to have regained much of her strength. Missing her recovery made Nick feel awful about himself.

"Hey mom," he offered, going to her as her face lit up. Taking her in a cautious hug, he whispered near her ear, "Long time, no see."

"Nicholas!" using the hand not on her cane to pull him close. "I was starting to worry. Finn said that you were tied up with work, but a mother still wonders when it has been long enough."

Nick buried his face in her shawl, trying not to let the sentimentality get to him. He had been through enough tears for one week and wanted to spare her any more of that, at least from him. Somehow, even at his age the scent of her shawl made any place seem like home.

"I don't know how long I can stay," he admitted, glancing at the clock. He had about four hours until Judy got back from Bunnyburrow and less than that before the ZIA was likely to pick up on his choice of places to go. He had made sure to leave behind his cell phone so that if they were tracking him, nothing would lead to his mother. "Was in the neighborhood and realized I was being a bad son. Thought we could do lunch and sit and talk for a while. It's the least I can do after spending so much time away."

His mother carefully sat down in one of the nearby chairs, putting her cane against the wall nearby where she could reach it. Looking him up and down, she frowned. "You're thinner than a weasel, Nick. What has the academy done to you?"

"Made me actually get in a shape other than slightly roundish," he answered playfully, going to the couch across from her to sit. "What've you been up to?"

"Oh, the usual for a place like this." She motioned dismissively, as though the idea of discussing her life was absurd. That was nothing new. His mother had never been willing to allow the focus of any conversation to drift away from him or Finnick if she could help it. "Tell me about you. I haven't seen you since graduation and even then you got dragged off by that…oh what was her name…the cute little gray thing…"

"Judy. They really hate being called 'cute'."

"Yes, Judy. The bunny. Don't like 'cute'? What about 'gray'? Is that a bad word these days, too? Did 'bunny' fall out of favor, too?"

"No, I think all of those are still fine, mom. It's just 'cute'. They take it sort of how we don't usually like 'sketchy' or 'shady'…"

His mother huffed at that and folded her paws in her lap. "Of course we don't. So rude. I don't see how the two are even a little similar, but you know better than I do. How is that little one, anyway? She seemed to be quite forceful for a bunny. Is she the one training you? Given what they said about her on the news, I certainly hope so."

"Judy's doing well enough," he managed, sitting back on the couch. This was not exactly a conversation he wanted to have. "I actually just went with her to her grandfather's funeral over in Bunnyburrow. Been a rough week for her."

Nodding sagely, his mother tapped the claws of one paw on the back of the other. A silent minute passed and finally she started the conversation again with, "You never were good about hiding things, Nicholas. Worse since Finn started telling on you. He mentioned you would be stopping by, because of something he found on your phone that he thought you'd want to talk with me about. Care to explain?"

Nick's jaw fell despite his efforts and he felt himself sinking into the couch to disappear. Curling his tail into his lap and flattening his ears, he slowly closed his mouth and tried to come up with the right words. How could Finnick have told his mother about porn on his phone? He felt like a kit who had misbehaved, no matter how he tried to remind himself that it was absurd.

"Something about girl problems," his mother continued and Nick nearly leapt into the air, screaming for joy. "Says you've become quite the hermit of late. How is it that my Nicky is in his thirties and is still having girl problems? Shouldn't you be married or at least involved with _someone_ by now?"

That question was very nearly as difficult as the one he had been afraid he would be forced to answer. "I…I don't know. It just never works out."

"I can't imagine a vixen turning you down, Nicholas. I can tell you're not saying something. I've been your mother long enough that you'll have to say something pretty extreme to rattle me. Spit it out."

Nick tried to come up with something he could mislead her with, but the gentle, loving, and patient stare she gave him left no room for lies. She was probably the only person in his life that he had never intentionally lied to. If he did try to lie to her, it would have eaten him up inside…just as it would if he ever hurt Judy.

"They aren't right for me," he admitted, shrugging and flopping back on the couch so that he could stare at the ceiling instead of his mother. "Dating always feels temporary and then it is. It's not even a surprise anymore when I realize I'm not the right mammal for them…"

"You're the one leaving, not them?"

Nick nodded and realized that what he was saying was not going to win him any points with his mother. His own father had abandoned them and he had just made himself out to be the same. "I don't want to hurt them. If it's not right…I'd rather say something before they get too attached."

His mother watched him quietly for a moment, still tapping her claws. "Not because you're running off with the next vixen to come along?"

"Never," he replied immediately. "I've never left because I thought they weren't good enough for me. It's…well…it's because I'm not good enough for them."

"You always did worry about being like your father," his mother chided, shaking her head sadly. "That's the opposite of him, so quit your worrying. Caring too much isn't something I really can fault you for."

Nick smiled a little at that. It was reassuring to hear it from his mother that he had not become the fox that had left her. Still, he never could quite convince himself.

"Something is different now, though," she continued, drawing his attention back. "Finn said that you weren't even trying to date anymore. Am I to assume I'm getting no grandkits?"

"No, that's probably not going to happen anytime soon."

"Are you trying to tell me something about you and Finn?"

Nick sat up and gave his mother his most incredulous stare. As usual, he could not tell if she was being serious or not. "I think you know me better than that, mom. Heck, I've had to keep him away from her…"

The tapping of claws stopped instantly. Shit. He had slipped. "Now we're getting somewhere, Nicky. You stopped dating because you found someone. I have no idea why Finn thinks it's so hard to drag this information out of you."

Nick kept his mouth open as he tried to make the word come out, but it took him almost five minutes before he could push such a simple statement from his mind into the world. Once it was out there, he knew that he could never take it back.

"Yes?"

"Well?" his mother inquired, leaning forward a little. "Tell me about her. Why isn't she here? What's the problem?"

Nick covered his face, wanting to scream, to growl like an actual animal. This was not a conversation he was ready to have with himself, but his mother had always been able to force the truth out of him. Perhaps that was why he had been avoiding this visit for some time. Come to think of it, he had started avoiding any visits with her after meeting Judy.

"She doesn't want a relationship," he finally managed to blurt out, his paws still over his eyes. "Too independent. Even if she did...it wouldn't work. She sees relationships as being tied down. It's just too complicated. I need to let her go, but I can't convince myself."

"So you're…what…sitting around moping and wishing the world would change? Does she even know?"

"More or less. And no, she doesn't know. That wouldn't be fair to her with how she feels about these things."

His mother laughed and threw her paws in the air helplessly. "Let her make that choice, Nicky! You say it wouldn't work, but I can't see why not. If you love her, these things find a way. Even if they don't, letting yourself pout and wait for the chance to pass isn't healthy."

"I'm not pouting." The words sounded to his own ears as though he were pouting and he could feel his ears tucking back about as far as they would go.

"Talk to the vixen," she assured him, her tone softening. "Nicky, do you hear me? Until you do, you'll never be able to move on. If she accepts things as they are, you were wrong and you get a chance at something wonderful. If she refuses, you know for sure and can start healing. That's how these things work."

Nick inhaled deeply, preparing himself for what he figured would be the worst part of the conversation. Re-covering his eyes, he said more quietly, "She's not a vixen, mom."

A faint "hrm" from across the room prompted Nick to peek out between his fingers. His mother was tapping her chin, apparently trying to sort through things.

"A wolf. Probably a wolf," she finally announced. "I'm not stupid, Nick. I know that there aren't a lot of foxes in Zootopia. Times have changed since I was a kit. A fox and a wolf…it's a little odd, but I have always loved and supported you. That's not going to judge you over something that minor. No grandkits, but I'd rather you were happy."

There was no going back now. Leaning forward and letting his paws drop to his sides, Nick slowly said, "She's…not…a…wolf."

"Then what, Nick? What's so awful that you're being vague?"

"She's…she's not even a predator."

That seemed to cut through his mother's thoughts and she froze, staring at him as though he were telling the worst joke imaginable or trying to mislead her.

"And that," Nick continued, "is why I don't want to tell her. That look right there. From her, it would crush me."

His mother blinked a few times, looking around the floor. She slowly managed to reacquire her smile and any hint of judgement disappeared. "The bunny. The hero of Zootopia."

Nick swore under his breath. So much for being vague.

"She's…I'll admit, she's not what I expected from you," his mother went on, laughing a little. "If you're going to give your mother a heart attack, I suppose you picked someone worth the surprise. Not just some meek bunny that you can talk your way around. I think that rabbit might be able to hold her own against you from what I've seen of her on the news."

"Trust me, she can."

The confusion slowly came back and his mother lowered her voice. "How would that…I mean…have you two…? I know I'm old-fashioned but that sounds…awkward."

"Nope," Nick blurted out, his ears heating at the idea of talking about this with his mother. "I don't know how that would work, either. Like I said, hopeless."

Clicking her tongue, his mother shook her head. "Nothing's hopeless, Nick. You're going to take me to lunch and tell me all about her. After that, you are going to promise me that you will talk to this bunny about your feelings before next weekend. If you don't, I'll have Finn drag your tail back here to explain why."

"Judy."

"Hrm?"

"Her name is Judy," Nick answered, smiling. He felt more relieved than he had in months. "You have yourself a deal, mom."


	15. Chapter 4-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 4.3**

 **June 19** **th** **, Sunday Afternoon – Savanna Central**

Hurrying through the streets, Nick tried not to meet the eyes of those he passed. Some would want to talk to him and others might remember him from his hustling days. Neither was something he wanted to deal with. Instead, he had a mission and he had to complete it before he lost his nerve. If he made the mistake of backing out now, he would end up at home and have to build up his courage all over again.

Nick came to a stop, his nose telling him he was at the right place. Once he did this, the next step would be even harder to back out on.

Turning on his heel, Nick walked into the flower shop.

In his entire life, Nick had been in a flower store perhaps…no…not once, unless his mother had dragged him into one as a kit. He considered flowers to be about the worst way to catch a vixen's eye. Finding a place that sold fried chicken in a city that was almost entirely prey was one thing, but flowers were not how one enticed foxes.

Today, he was not trying to win over a fox and his mother had scolded him relentlessly about trying to think things through as though he were. Almost as an afterthought, he pulled out his phone and checked the text he had gotten less than an hour earlier.

 _Train got in a little early. Already at home. Dad says sorry again. I made him smash the taser. - J_

Nick wanted to wait a little before replying. He had some shopping to sort out and dearly wanted to be able to stall for every minute he could get. Nick had not been this nervous since he was in high school, but his mother had been adamant that it was a good sign, at least of his feelings. Idly, he rubbed at the burns on his hip.

Nick navigated through the store, trying to make sense of all the different colors, shapes, and scents that surrounded him. It took less than a minute and he knew that he was in over his head. The more he stared at the flowers, the more they all looked like Night Howlers to him.

Resigning himself to having to depend on others, Nick went to the store's desk, where an alpaca clerk sat reading a newspaper, entirely ignoring him or unaware that he was there. Nick cleared his throat and waited as the alpaca looked right over him and then finally glanced down.

"Hello!" the larger mammal exclaimed, leaning on the desk so he could better see Nick. "We don't get a lot of foxes in here. You lost?"

"No, no I am not," Nick assured the taller mammal, doing his best to keep his smile. "Got a certain friend that could use some cheering up flowers and I need some help finding the right ones for her."

"What species?"

That question took Nick a bit by surprise. Given that foxes were not big on flowers, he guessed there might be some variation in tastes. "Bunny."

The alpaca nodded and got up, making his way around the desk and eyeing various bouquets around the store. He seemed to be following his nose as much as his eyes as he wandered about. "Are you looking for appearance only or good-tasting, as well?"

Nick blinked at that. He had not even considered that side of things. "Let's go with both. Both seems reasonable."

"Does she have a favorite color?"

He faltered again on that. "I…am not so sure. Her eyes are violet though. Might be a nice touch if the flowers matched her eyes."

"And I thought foxes were bad at this," the alpaca said, chuckling as he led Nick to another part of the store, one of his ears flicking at a fly. "We keep edibles on this side and color or scent-only arrangements back near the register. Makes it easier for those of you who don't have a taste for this sort of thing. Pun intended."

Nick shoved his paws back in his pockets and slowed his breathing. No sense in grumbling or getting annoyed just yet.

"What do you think of these?" the shopkeeper asked, lifting a large bouquet of violet and pink flowers. The violet ones were almost a match for Judy's eyes and the pink were fairly close to the shade of the sun dress she had worn earlier that week.

"Stunning," Nick admitted, grinning at last. Things were finally coming together. "You said they're edible, too? For her, not for me."

"The pink ones are a little sharper than the purple, but both have good aftertaste. Haven't had a single complaint on either. If I recall, the movie theater down the road uses a similar pink for their movie snacks."

"Sounds perfect. Go ahead and wrap that up for me," Nick told him, pulling out his phone again. As he did, he found that the coaster from the bar was still in his shirt pocket. Laughing a little at it, Nick folded it in half and shoved it into his back pocket so he would remember to throw it away later.

While the alpaca worked on preparing the flowers to be carried, Nick set to typing a reply to Judy.

 _In the area. Watch terrible movie and catch-up? –N_

Nick started to put away his phone, but got a reply almost immediately. Judy was not usually quite so prompt.

 _I guess. Wanted to stay in and sleep. –J_

That struck Nick as more than a little odd, but he stared at the message as he paid the shop owner and walked out with his flowers. Judy had never turned down a bad movie, though they usually met somewhere neutral so that neither could see the other's awful home. He had to assume that was part of the reason for her particular reply.

 _If not a movie, still want to see you if you don't mind. –N_

Nick walked down the sidewalk toward Judy's apartment. He would be there in only a couple minutes, but she did not need to know that. A little extra surprise. After a few days with her family, she probably needed the cheering up, even if she was not ready to admit it.

 _You sure? Tomorrow maybe? –J_

That brought Nick to an abrupt halt on the sidewalk. He could actually see her apartment from where he was standing. Something felt wrong about her replies. She must have been even more rattled by her family than he had thought or was exhausted.

 _Very sure. Won't keep you long. Just want to say hi. –N_

The reply took less than a second.

 _OK. –J_

Nick felt even more nervous as a result of the odd conversation. Judy normally was the one who would not stop typing. Nearly every conversation they had in the past ended with him sending a series of replies such as:

"Going to bed now."

"No really. Bed. Me. Now."

"Stop."

"I'm asleep."

"I'm dead."

"Changing my number now."

"Is that the sun coming up?"

Forcing the questions out of his mind, Nick stared at the flowers he was carrying. Knowing Judy, she would be beside herself and bounce around the apartment for half an hour. Thoughts of that unbridled joy was the only thing that kept him from running away, given what he wanted to say to her once she calmed down.

"You can do this, Nick," he assured himself softly, walking quickly up the steps to the apartment building. As it had been the last time, the front door's lock was broken and he easily walked in. "Tell her you're willing to try to make this work and you have been dwelling on every second since you last cuddled with her. Maybe even admit to how you feel. Tell her you can't imagine a day without her. Tell her that every day since she came into your life has been better than the last. Don't let those eyes hypnotize you. Stay focused on the message. Can't be that hard. Just don't go too far. Don't say you love her or you'll scare her…and yourself."

Nick stopped at Judy's door, trying to steady himself. His heart felt as though it was trying to launch itself through his ribs and his stomach churned endlessly. He stood still at the door, fidgeting with the bouquet of flowers and trying to make his other paw tap on the door.

"Say the words and your life changes right here and now," he murmured, squeezing his eyes shut as he forced his free paw to rap on the wood door. The echo of that knock was the loudest thing he had heard in a long time. Even training in the firing range had felt quieter.

A second later, the door creaked open and Nick found himself looking down into those beautiful eyes, his whole planned message lost. She stood in the doorway in a long nightshirt that came almost to her knees, watching him more quietly than usual, her expression questioning why he was there as her nose twitched.

Nick's mind grasped at straws on how to start talking until he managed to remember the flowers and hold them out to her. Judy reached out hesitantly, taking them only after he offered them several times.

"I…I don't know what to say," Judy mumbled, her ears low as she sniffed the flowers. Her eyes darted between the different flowers rapidly. "Why?"

Nick took in a deep breath as he looked for a way into the room. Despite the thin walls, he wanted to have the conversation inside. To his surprise, Judy did not budge from the middle of the doorway.

Lifting his eyes off of her for the first time since she had opened the door, Nick saw that Judy was not alone. Sitting on the floor beside her bed was another bunny, who stared at Nick questioningly. The buck had himself propped with a pillow against her bed so that he was seated in front of a small television, on which an old movie was playing. A second pillow lay alongside him, where Judy had probably been sitting, until Nick had disturbed them. Like Judy, the buck was dressed for bed.

Both dressed for bed in a one-bedroom apartment. Nick was not great with math, but this added up poorly for him.

"I don't think you got a chance to meet Jack before you left the burrow," Judy offered, seemingly noticing his stare past her. "He came in before the service, but I can't remember introducing you two. The last few days were so busy, I don't remember a lot of things. Did you want to come in for a few minutes?"

Nick's nervousness and fear drained away into a cold calm that was all too familiar after years of putting on acts for the people he had scammed. If he let himself sort out the details of what he had interrupted, he was going to be either crying or yelling within seconds. Neither was fair to Judy. Smiling with no emotion behind it, he shook his head.

"Nah, just wanted to give you those to brighten the place up a little. Looked a little drab when I was here last."

Judy smiled a little more warmly, though her eyes searched his face. She was trying to read what he was hiding from her. He had to go before she reasoned her way through things. He knew his attempts to hide his emotions would only last so long with her.

"G'night," Nick quickly added, smiling wider. Leaning a little so that he could see the other bunny, he added, "You two have fun. Judy, I'll see you in the morning at the precinct."

Not waiting for a reply, Nick headed back out of the apartment building as fast as he could manage without breaking into a run. He got himself out onto the street and ducked into the nearest alley, flattening himself against the wall as he gasped for breath.

This was not how things were supposed to be. This was supposed to be his moment, his one time to do the right thing and come out ahead. After the cuddling in Bunnyburrow, despite the things Judy had said, he had believed there was a chance. A glimmer of hope. If there had been, his rejection of her advances appeared to have cost him that.

Roaring fiercely, Nick rounded and punched the brick wall with his left paw without thinking. His growl dropped into a pained whimper as he dropped to his knees, clutching his bloodied paw. If he were very lucky, it might not be broken. When he tried to move his fingers, his whole arm flared with agony.

Nick slid down to a seated position on the pavement and cradled his arm. Panting to catch his breath, he dug around in his shirt pocket with his usable paw, trying to find his phone.

"Calm down, Nick," he told himself firmly, once he had his phone in-paw. "You've misunderstood a lot about her before. This is probably no different. Verify first, panic later. This could be simpler than you think. Cultural differences."

Tapping quickly with his thumb, Nick stared at the search he had just put into the Moogle bar on the phone: "Are Zootopian bunnies generally monogamous?"

The question was the most reasonable one he could come up with. Some species simply were not and if that included Judy…he needed to calm down and ask more questions of her directly. A "no" would let him know that she might still have strong feelings for him as well as whoever this Jack might be. That, at least, was recoverable in its own way, even if it was not what he had hoped for and would require some adjustment of his expectations. A "yes" complicated things and did not bode well for his mood.

The corresponding search for his species, he already knew. They were flighty and fickle with partners, until they found one they wanted to stick with. Then, most foxes were rigidly monogamous out of habit, aside from Finnick. Nick's nature was his problem, not Judy's, if it conflicted with hers.

Nick sat there a long time, staring at the question that he really did not want the answer to. At length, he managed to force his thumb to press the search button. Immediately, a lengthy answer appeared on the screen that was summed up with the simpler statement: "Zootopia rabbits are monogamous at the same rate as other monogamous species, while some individuals may take different views."

Scrolling down, Nick barely took in any of the results for his original search as his eyes glazed over. It was not until he neared the bottom of the first page that bunny porn began to show up. He laughed despite himself then threw his phone against the brick wall of the building across the alley, shattering it.

Nick got up slowly, reaching into his pocket where he had put the coaster from the bar. Staring at it, he memorized the number Silvia had given him and began making his way back home, as he could not call her without a working phone. Besides, he was going to have to visit urgent care to see if his paw was broken.


	16. Chapter 4-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 4.4**

 **June 19** **th** **, Sunday Afternoon – Savanna Central**

Judy stared at the open door long after Nick had left, wondering what the bizarre visit had been all about. Shaking her head, she finally closed the door and went back to the pile of blankets and pillow on the floor that she had been settling into when Nick had arrived. Self-consciously, she pulled the blanket over her legs and rubbed at her toes to warm them back up.

"Was that the fox?" came Pronk's shout from next door and Judy could not bring herself to reply. Instead, she pulled her knees up to her chin under the blanket and let her ears flop over her face as she set the flowers down in front of her.

"Of course that was the fox!" Bucky shouted right back. "Poor bunny's got a predator stalking her! Should call the ZPD…"

"Was that…him?" asked Jack, eyeing the flowers with a bit of annoyance. Only two hours in Zootopia and he had already tuned out her neighbors. "The fox you were telling me about?"

"Yeah," Judy answered, picking off one of the flower petals and nibbling it, though her appetite was rather dull. Something about Nick's visit had her entirely on-edge, well beyond the fact that he had done something nice for her. "I don't think I've seen him that angry…pretty much ever."

Jack shrugged and turned the remote for the television over in his paws. "Foxes are predators. Of course they get angry. Does he usually bring you flowers and then stomp away? It doesn't really seem that weird for a fox."

Judy shook her head and plucked another petal. They were almost exactly the color of her eyes. That could not be a coincidence, especially not with Nick. He was far too careful with specifics for that to happen by accident.

"He never has before," she whispered, holding up one of the flowers and staring at it sadly. Her appetite was entirely gone. "This is the first time. This is the first time anyone has."

"You think that's his way of apologizing for something?"

Judy sniffed at the flower, taking in the sweet aroma, as well as the faint scent of Nick having held it recently. "Either that, or his way of saying goodbye."

They sat there silently for a short time, until Jack reached back onto Judy's bed and pulled the stuffed fox doll from under her pillow. "Does that mean we can get rid of this creepy thing?"

Judy's ears perked up and she snatched the plush from Jack, pulling it tightly to her chest. "Not a chance. Just because you're moving in, doesn't mean you can get rid of my things."

"Does it mean I can have one of those flowers, if you're not going to? You don't have any snacks in this place."

Judy hesitated, but offered the bouquet to Jack, who took to eating the pink flowers. Squeezing her fox doll with one arm and holding the single purple flower in the other paw, she wondered what had just happened and what was to come. More than that, she wondered if she truly had driven Nick away with her behavior back at the burrow and this was the beginning of the fallout.

As Jack turned back on the movie, Judy heard a cry of anger and pain outside in the alley, but decided not to risk looking. She was not sure she wanted to know. Instead, she waited until after the movie and Jack had gone to bed later that night to dig out her phone.

 _Nick, you ok? –J_

She lay in bed for nearly an hour, staring at her own message, waiting for a reply to come through.

 _Nick, I'm worried. You looked upset. Is everything ok? –J_

Again, no answer. It was not like Nick to let text messages go unanswered for very long, especially before it was too late at night. It was barely sundown and he should have been up for another few hours. Sundays, they usually texted until well past when either of them should have been asleep.

 _Answer me, Nick. I need to know you are all right. –J_

She gave that message another half hour before she slowly thumbed one final message, though she paused after typing it, unable to quite press the button to send.

 _I love you, Nick. I'm sorry if I hurt you in BB. Please forgive me. Let me know we are still friends. –J_

That message stayed on her screen until well after one in the morning, taunting her with its simplicity and yet the trouble sending it might cause. Finally, Judy deleted the message and turned off her phone, though she knew she was not going to get any sleep.

Pulling her plush fox close, Judy glanced down at Jack on the floor of the apartment to be sure that he had not been reading her message. He snored softly, reassuring her that he was blissfully unaware of what she had been sending to Nick.

Rolling over to put her back toward Jack, Judy buried her face in the stuffed fox doll and let it wipe away her tears the way Nick had in the past. She was simply not ready to let Jack know what she was putting herself through. Not yet. Maybe once she had gotten a straight answer out of Nick. Maybe not even then.


	17. Chapter 5-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.1**

 **June 20** **th** **, Monday – ZPD Precinct One**

Chief Bogo was already in the room when Judy arrived, which was a definite change. Normally she was among the first into the bullpen and Bogo made a point of waiting until after all of the mammals had at least found their seats before coming in. Adding to that oddity, the chief was going through a fair amount of papers on the podium with his glasses low on his muzzle, quietly discussing them with Higgins. Something big was up, which suited Judy just fine. All the better to get her mind off the strange way Nick had been acting the previous afternoon.

Judy's ears perked at the distinctive sound of Nick entering the bullpen as if summoned by her thought. She had long since given up trying to explain to others the way she could differentiate between mammals by the way their clothing and fur sounded, or the pattern of their stride. They all looked at her like she was insane when she described mammals by sounds and so had given up mentioning it. Honestly, she felt much the same when they talked about scents being quite so distinctive.

Judy kept her attention forward, trying not to give Nick reason to think she was worried about him. When he had joined her at the front of the room, she would be able to better evaluate how he was doing. The wait would not be long. He would stagger straight up the aisle from the coffee pot outside and mutter for her to move over…

The fairly routine seconds she had come to count on passed and Judy's ears sank as she looked down to her left, but there was no Nick beside her.

Turning around while standing on the chair, Judy spotted Nick still a few rows back, talking with Fangmeyer. Nick had his usual coffee and looked nearly as tired as Judy felt, but he was making a point of speaking to the other officers as he made his way in. Once he began walking again, Nick glanced up at Judy but then stopped at the next row to chat briefly with Delgato.

 _Okay, something is definitely wrong_ , she told herself, turning back to the front of the room to wait. _Nick doesn't just change his patterns overnight._

At last Nick appeared at the side of the chair, and Judy waited for his traditionally gruff, "Move over." Instead, he climbed up, actually muscling his way onto the oversized chair. He did give her a halfhearted smile, but he immediately faced forward, waiting for Bogo to begin.

"You didn't answer my texts last night," Judy softly whispered from the side of her mouth, keeping both paws clenched on the table and her eyes forward. "Was worried you got mugged or something."

Nick cocked his head, and she could see him watching her from the corner of his eyes. After a moment, he took out his phone and scrolled through a few screens. "That is so…interesting. Not one message. You sure you weren't texting someone else? Maybe someone from back in Bunnyburrow?"

Judy looked down at the phone when Nick set it on the desk in front of them. There was no crack in the screen. He had replaced his phone. If he had not gotten her texts…

"Did you change your number?" she asked, no longer even trying to pretend she was paying attention to Bogo. Then she noticed the heavy bandage on his left paw, immobilizing all but the end joints of his fingers.

Nick's smirk widened. "Now, why would I do that, Officer Hopps? The only reason someone would change their number is if they don't want to hear from someone else."

Judy's ears fell and she felt clammy all over. Nick had never been one to be subtle, unless he was actively hustling. Trying to keep from shaking, she locked her fingers together on the table and returned her attention to Bogo, who appeared to finally be ready. She would try again later, including finding some way to get him to talk about what had happened to his paw.

"Shut it," Bogo bellowed, despite there being very little conversation going on. "I'm going to make this quick because we need to get moving today. Last week, we had two officers out, so after the meeting, anyone who has information I missed, please provide it to Francine and Hopps.

"One week ago today, the ZPD was tasked with investigating an illegal gambling ring. The details of that investigation were not public information at the time, but by midweek we were able to reveal that a simple underground card network has moved into openly trading what we can only call slaves who have been kidnapped from Zootopia and surrounding areas."

Judy's jaw dropped. "Chief? Actual slavery? In Zootopia? Isn't that…sort of the opposite of what the city stands for?"

"It is, Hopps," Bogo answered firmly, frustration evident in his voice. "A citizen, who we are keeping unnamed, learned of this by accident. They believed they were winning the paid services of some low-income workers. Once they won, they learned that none of the workers were willingly acting, nor were they getting paid. Many had been abused. All were picked off the streets and given offers of aid when they could not refuse. Thankfully this citizen came to the ZPD with this information, rather than letting the victims go and then hiding what had happened. They have worked with us to gather information, and this is what led to the investigation last week.

"Last Monday, I assigned one of you to look into the group that handled this card game and facilitated the crime. That officer has since been cleared of any wrongdoing in any previous involvement with the group—"

Every face in the room turned to look at Nick, who slurped loudly at his coffee.

"—and was able to name certain key figures in the management of it. ZPD moved in on a ferret named Maury—no surname. This individual was reportedly missing, with his disappearance dating back to just before the first instance of known slave trading at the gambling ring. ZPD tracked down Maury's mother—again, with the help of an officer's leads—"

Again, every face turned to Nick. Judy had apparently missed quite a bit in a single week. In less than that, given that Nick had been with her until Wednesday. She could not fathom why none of this had been brought to her attention before arriving at the precinct.

"—and the findings were not ideal."

As Bogo finished, Higgins began putting pictures up on the board behind him. Judy felt herself getting sick almost immediately as she was able to make out bloodstained walls and rugs, and the battered remains of at least one mammal, if not more. One picture appeared to show a pile of bones scattered on a bloodied carpet.

"In the home," Bogo said once whispers and nervous gasps had quieted down, "we found the remains of both Maury and his mother. Both had been dosed with Night Howlers, though we believe this incident was not a resurgence of that issue, but rather a message being sent."

"What message?" asked Francine, leaning onto the desk in front of her, making it creak a little under the elephant's weight.

"The home was filled with cameras," noted Bogo. "Someone filmed these two killing each other and sent the pictures to the various crime lords of Zootopia. Several of these were sent to the ZPD. We believe that whoever took over Maury's gambling operation is making it very clear that they do not intend to run a clean business. The message is simply that anyone crossing them is going to end up dead, and not painlessly."

The chief let the room descend into whispers for a minute, which was not something he usually allowed.

"Now, on to what we are doing about it," Bogo began again, and for once the room went quiet without him having to demand silence. "Delgato and Wolford…I want you two to run regular patrols as though nothing has changed. Make yourselves visible. Fangmeyer, McHorn, Grizzoli, Snarlof, Higgins, Andersen, and Pennington…Clawhauser has your assignments. I'm scattering you through four other precincts. You are to work with their tactical teams on this and follow any leads. Do not operate alone. Anyone willing to do what we've already seen is a serious threat. Hopps and Wilde…I want you in my office immediately. We'll determine if you have an assignment or not. Dismissed."

Judy's ears shot up in surprise. She had expected a fairly creative assignment when they were not part of the other teams, but being summoned to Bogo's office usually meant they had done something wrong. She had been back on the clock for less than half an hour, so she could not imagine having caused trouble that fast. Even Nick would struggle to be a nuisance so quickly. When she looked over, his calm expression told her nothing.

Reluctantly Judy hopped off the chair and followed Chief Bogo out of the room and down the hall, with Nick trailing a little behind. When they reached the office, Bogo waited for both to get inside and then closed the door behind them. Judy and Nick walked over and took seats.

"What's the problem?" Bogo demanded, sitting down hard on the chair behind his desk. "I spent years as a detective. I'm not an idiot. You two looked like you are going to come to blows, but are too polite to do it publicly. If we are going down that road, I will take you both out back and sort this out before I suspend the both of you. In case there is any doubt, my money is on Hopps."

Judy fidgeted nervously but had no real answer. She was not mad, just concerned. Looking at Nick, she found him staring out the window, as though nothing Bogo had said applied to him.

"We're doing this the hard way?" Bogo grumbled, leaning forward. "You will both be suspended without pay effective immediately if you do not answer truthfully. You have one chance. Wilde, what's your problem with your partner?"

Nick scowled and shrugged, finally taking his eyes off the window to stare at Bogo. "There may be some confusing feelings between us, sir. I think I've got things figured out on my side. I'm ready to do my job."

"Hopps?"

Looking around frantically, Judy tried to decide what she should say. "I…I think I made Nick uncomfortable when we were in Bunnyburrow. Maybe we weren't quite what he expected. I don't believe it will impact my work, sir. Still trying to figure out what's going on, myself."

Bogo slowly looked between them before finally saying, "Very well. The two of you will be doing some undercover hunting with your old associates. Wilde, go down to the motor pool—they should have a car ready for you. Hopps, I want to finish briefing you on what has happened with this case."

Smiling without any hint of emotion, Nick hopped off his chair, headed from the office, and closed the door behind him.

The office remained silent a minute after Nick had gone, with Bogo watching the door. Once he seemed sure Nick was out of hearing range, Bogo returned his hard stare to Judy. "What did Wilde do, Judy? If this is going to compromise our investigation, I will have his badge pulled immediately."

Judy winced and hugged herself, unsure what else to do with her paws. "He didn't do anything, sir. There was a little too much alcohol at the wake."

Bogo groaned and rocked back in his chair. "I don't want to know the details, Judy. I will assume that mistakes were made. That does explain this, though…"

He slid a small sheet of paper across the desk, and Judy reached up to grab it. Skimming the hand-written note, she recognized Nick's handwriting.

"He wants a new senior officer?" she asked aloud, rereading the note several times. "A…a different partner?"

"So it would seem. Given that his past provides a great deal of insight on this case and the efforts we have taken to keep his name out of most headlines, I believe he is still vital to solving this. Once you two finish, we may need to discuss reassignment or dismissal, depending on how serious this situation really is. You have until the end of this case to work out your differences. I have already spoken with him and he has no objections to keeping things as they are for a few more days. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. With that behind us—and I expect that it will stay behind us—I do need to give you more information on the case. Nick came up with a few leads on the gambling ring, that may provide further directions to continue our search. I want you two to simply observe for now. Plain clothes. An unmarked car will be provided. The van set aside for you two is one of our old SWAT vehicles and is bulletproof."

"Do you think that's going to be something we need to worry about, sir?"

Chief Bogo shrugged. "Whoever we are dealing with has proven themselves willing to kill. I'd rather my officers have some protection until we know what we're up against. As I said, observation only. Wilde has the location, but the gist of this is that you are watching some of the low-ranking members of the ring. They may lead us back to the rest."

"Understood."

"And Hopps," Bogo added, leaning forward far enough that he was looking down at her. "I hope whatever happened between you and Wilde can get resolved. I like you two together. You are an excellent team. That was not lost on anyone here at the precinct."

Nodding, she clenched her jaw to keep from saying anything she might regret. Judy hurried from the room and down to the side of the ZPD where the motor pool released vehicles. As she came out into the bright morning sunlight, a rumbling van was already waiting at the curb. Nick was in the passenger seat, his hind paws up on the dash, his arms hooked behind his head, and his eyes closed behind his sunglasses.

Judy went around to the driver's seat and hopped onto it, then waited for the powered lifter to raise it into a usable position. Given that whoever had been in it before her was likely a rhino or another large species, she would have to be patient.

"Nick, we should talk about what happened," she offered after a moment, but if Nick heard her, he did not move. "For the good of the team…"

"Ah, I see," he replied, his eyes still closed. "It's about the team. Clearly I misunderstood something, if that's the case. Let's get something clear between us, if we're going to go down this path. I finally understand my place here, and I'm done trying to second guess myself. Fool me once, dumb fox. Fool me twice, no more fox."

Judy stared at him in confusion, barely grasping what he was saying. "Nick, if this is a concern about trust, we already dealt with that. I absolutely trust you. I trust you with my life."

Lifting the edge of his glasses so he could look over at her without his green eyes being obstructed, Nick took a moment to reply. "I trust you will watch my back, Judy. You can trust that I'll do the same for you. That's as far as trust goes at this point."

Judy tried to reach out to touch Nick's arm, to plead with him, but he moved so she could not quite get to him without crawling across the vehicle.

"Nick, you're being petty. I screwed up. I know that. Why are you acting like me getting a little tipsy and hanging on you is so much worse than when I had a hard time convincing myself you wouldn't eat me? I made a mistake. It's not like you've never made mistakes."

He smiled at that. "I am being petty. I know that, Judy. But at least I know when I've hurt people and don't have to guess at what I did. At this point I want to stop putting myself in harm's way. That's not your fault, but you were the trigger for it, so I'll probably keep acting like it _is_ your fault for a while. I'll keep being petty until I'm sure that I have some safe footing in my life again. You really should start driving. Canal District isn't going to monitor itself, and I have places to be tonight."

That was new. Judy could not think of any time Nick had found anywhere else to be other than home, work, or with her. It had to be something with Finnick. When things calmed down a little, she would throttle that little monster if he had managed to turn Nick against her.

Putting the van in gear, Judy drove to their destination without trying to spark a conversation again.


	18. Chapter 5-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.2**

 **June 20** **th** **, Monday – Zootopia Canal District**

The van had been in position for almost three hours without Nick spotting any of the mammals they had been tasked with locating, which had resulted in far more awkward silence than he had anticipated. It was certainly more than he had been prepared to deal with and even as upset as he was, he knew he could not keep quiet forever.

Deep down, he felt terrible for refusing to speak to Judy, but he was still hurting and knew there was no chance of having a conversation in which he did not attack her verbally. Each time he snuck a look at her, Nick felt a pang of regret at her hanging ears and sad eyes watching the street for their targets. He had caused that, even if it was for the best. Upon realizing he was feeling that way, Nick would puff up his chest and remind himself that Judy now had a roommate to confide in. She did not need some sketchy fox coming by and harassing her to go out and have fun. She could have fun with her new boyfriend or whatever he was.

 _So quickly replaced_ , Nick thought, clenching his jaw until it hurt. _Wednesday I thought she had really decided that I was more than her partner. All I needed was some time to think before jumping into things. Sunday she has a buck living with her. How's a fox supposed to react? Of course I'm being petty. Finnick would have lit the whole apartment building on fire in my place._

Finnick. It was not going to be fun admitting that he had been right. Nick half-expected at least ten minutes of laughter without a breath when he told Finnick about how things had ended. More importantly, it meant Finnick's bargain stood and Nick was going to have to try going out with…crap, he had already forgotten her name. Silvia, he recalled. A few hours until he was supposed to meet her at the bar and he still was struggling to keep her name straight.

That led Nick's thoughts to the other person he was going to have to cover this with: his mother. She had managed to get behind him making the foolish choice for love, and where had it gotten him? He was right back where he started—a sketchy fox who went home to an empty apartment every night, but now one with a job that required him to spend time with the person he had hoped to be with after-hours.

Reassignment was one of only two options. He needed to be away from Judy, or every day was going to hurt. That was an absolute once she had started talking as though things could be unchanged after the decisions they both had made in the last week. If he could not get away from her to have time to heal, he had a single remaining possibility—quitting the ZPD. That was drastic and he knew it. This was the first time in his life that people believed in him, trusted him, and were willing to depend on him. Abandoning that trust from the other officers and the city officials who had accepted him simply to avoid someone he cared deeply for was not the way he wanted things to go, but there were not a lot of other options available.

"You said you had somewhere to be tonight?" Judy finally asked, leaning her chin on her crossed arms on the windowsill.

Nick sighed and shook his empty coffee cup. It had to come up eventually. He was a little surprised it had taken that long, given that Judy did not seem to understand why he was struggling. Again he considered spelling it out for her, but that was not fair to her either. He would melt down and she would feel guilty. She had not done anything wrong and was just following her heart in a direction that did not include him. This was his fault for letting it sting so badly. Then again, better to deal with it quickly and with finality.

"I've got a date tonight," he admitted, hurriedly looking out the window when those violet eyes turned to him. Nick was not going to let her manipulate him with that stare, whether she knew she was doing it or not. "Nothing too serious. Just don't want to be hours late on a first date. That usually doesn't go over well."

From his peripheral vision, Nick could see her nod as she lowered her eyes.

"I would like to meet her, someday," Judy offered, though she sounded as if she doubted her own words. "If we're still friends, that is."

Growling, Nick opened the door and got out, mad at himself for being mad, which he knew was an absurd loop he could not hope to win. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it, letting his tail hang weakly, thankful Judy could not see his face from where she sat. It was going to be a lot harder to make himself stop feeling strongly for her than he had expected. He dearly wished there was some way they could stay close, but for all his acts, he fell too easily. So long as Judy was around him, he would want things to go back. He would think about the night in her bedroom and how hard it had been to convince himself that he was doing the right thing by saying no, even when he had wanted…

Nick blinked hard and shivered, trying to coax his mind into thinking about anything else. He was already starting to dwell on it. All the more reason to get away. If he got aroused every time he daydreamed around Judy, he would never be able to do his job, and it would be a fresh sting every time he heard about or saw Jack.

He turned to throw his empty coffee cup into a nearby trash can and froze, realizing one of the two raccoons they were searching for was walking up the sidewalk a half block away. They only had a minute before she was bound to notice them.

"Judy," Nick hissed into the open window. "She's here. Stay put and watch for trouble."

Before Judy could object—which Nick knew she would, given their instructions—he set off walking directly toward their suspect. He did a rapid check of his clothes, hoping nothing stood out as suspicious. Worn T-shirt that was a little big on him. Worn blue jeans, with some fraying at the edges. Sections of his fur were matted wrong or sticking up—which was driving him insane, but was essential for looking like he belonged so far into the Canal District ghettos. Everything looked plain enough that he could have fooled himself. He dearly hoped that would be enough to deceive these mammals. Almost as an afterthought, he began scratching at the inner side of his left elbow to hint at a drug problem. A few deep scrapes in his fur gave the look he had hoped for.

Nick padded down the sidewalk, then slowed and stopped at a street sign shortly before reaching the raccoon. Once there, he checked his pockets frantically and muttered, which drew the attention of his suspect.

The raccoon stopped just in front of him, eyeing him from paw to nose.

"Lose something, fox?" she demanded, smoothing her own shirt as she evaluated Nick. Unlike Nick, she was far overdressed for the area and sported some gold jewelry. The fact that she had not been mugged confirmed he had the right mammal.

"I…thought I had more money on me," Nick said softly, flinching as often as he could manage to keep up his act. Making a show of giving up his search of his pockets, he added, "You know where a fox can find a bite to eat or a job around here? Maybe a roof for the night?"

The raccoon's toothy smile made Nick a little uncomfortable. "Homeless shelter is a block up. I hear they can help. Don't think they do jobs, though. Do I look like the local charity?"

Nick knew he had her attention and it was time to get risky if he wanted to get more out of her. He had dealt with enough people on the streets to know what desperation looked like and what might get through to her. Moreover, this was the life Finnick came from, so it was far from alien to Nick.

Reaching out quickly, he caught the raccoon's sleeve tightly. "I really need something. Please. I'd do anything to be off the street. Buy me a beer? A sandwich? Please!"

Even after training to deal with attacks, Nick could not respond fast enough when she turned on him. She grabbed his shirt and the fur under it, picked him fully off the ground and slammed him against the sign pole behind him, growling fiercely until he let go of her sleeve.

"That's better," she snarled, slowly lowering his hind paws back onto the ground. "Anything, you say? That can get someone in a lot of trouble, I hear. Be careful when you say things like that, fox."

Nick bit down a smirk. He had her and it had only cost him a few bruises on his back. "Yeah. Anything. You need some windows washed or something? I can do gardening or…"

To his surprise, the raccoon smiled and removed her paws from him. Smoothing out the front of his shirt, she then lifted his muzzle with a long claw, squinting as she looked him over. She went inch by inch over his face, neck, paws, and even legs—anywhere fur was visible—evaluating. After a moment, she pulled a twenty from her pocket and put it in his paw. "Maybe I can help, sweetie. This should get you by. You want to work? I can probably find something. Stop by the warehouse on Sixth and South Lynxon Wednesday morning. Offer's only good then. Bring that 'will do anything' attitude and I think we'll find you something. Cute thing like you can't be left out in the cold."

"Thanks," Nick murmured, staring at the paper money as though it were the only time he had held that much in years. "Th…thank you."

Grinning in such a way that Nick began to truly understand what prey felt like, the raccoon walked away without another word.

Nick stayed put until she had reached the next block and had no chance of seeing him anymore. Once he was certain she was not coming back, he rushed back to the van, where Judy was practically bouncing in agitation.

"What was that?!" Judy demanded, slapping the steering wheel repeatedly. "We had orders, Nick! She could have killed you!"

"Yeah, we sure did have orders," he replied, putting the twenty on the dashboard. "Now we have orders, a location, and prints of a lead. Let's get out of here. I don't want anyone else seeing us until we can run those prints and check out the location where they're taking in victims. Too risky. If I'm not mistaken, I just got sized up for a job in prostitution. Lucky me."

Meeting Judy's glare, Nick put on his best smirk.

Judy fumed a little longer, her fingers flexing on the wheel as she stared at him. He was willing to bet she was probably trying to decide how to scold him without making matters worse.

Finally, she huffed, started the van, turned them around in the mostly empty street, and took them back toward Precinct One.


	19. Chapter 5-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.3 – A New Life**

 **June 20** **th** **, Monday Evening – Savannah Central**

Nick quickened his pace as he headed to the Slo Does Bar, knowing he was already running late. He had thought that by tricking their suspect into giving up information, he had saved himself from being kept after the end of his shift, but that had proven seriously untrue. Bogo had insisted on pages of paperwork, followed by a stern lecture about being responsible for the sake of his own hide, as well as his partner's. To his surprise Judy had still been at her desk when he had finally escaped from the precinct and she had watched him go, her expression giving him nothing.

For all his attempts to not let the issues between himself and Judy get to him, they were. He had no idea what to make of her moving someone in so quickly, nor how that played into her interactions with him. She did not seem to be in any rush to get home to Jack, so that added a whole new layer of complexity for Nick. If Judy was not happy with who she had chosen, that left him wanting to ask her about it, but his heart was not ready to risk making him vulnerable to her again. In the end, he chose to ignore it all and try to find some way to get on with his life in a hurry.

By the time Nick reached the bar's neon picture of two female deer, it was nearly eight in the evening. He had told Silvia he would arrive at seven—normally a reasonable guess for after work—but naturally he had been wrong. He could only hope she had not already given up on him. On the upside, if she had, he was already at a bar and it would be a very short trip to getting drunk.

Nick rushed inside and looked around frantically for any sign of the vixen, but in the entire bar, he could not see a single fox. Thankfully that included Finnick, who he had prayed would not show himself. Sighing, Nick made his way to the counter and took a seat as the cougar bartender waited on someone else.

"You look like you're in all kinds of trouble" came a smooth voice behind Nick once he had gotten settled. Silvia walked around to the serving side of the bar, then leaned on it to watch his face—and blatantly allow him a view down her shirt, which he opted to ignore. "All the look of a fox who's missed his date. Lucky thing we like people who are in trouble here. They're good for business. What'd you do to your paw, anyway?"

Nick laughed halfheartedly and nodded. As he looked back up, he realized Silvia was wearing an apron like the one she had on the last time he had seen her working, which she used to wipe down tables.

"Almost broke the paw, but it's a boring story and should be better in a week or two. You're working?" he asked, cocking his head a little. "I thought…"

"Only until eight thirty," Silvia answered quickly, grinning. "I've gone out with cops before. I know they're always late. The uniform makes putting up with it worthwhile."

Nick adjusted his dress shirt and tie, trying to put aside the sense of awkwardness he felt. "So you're saying I should have left the uniform on?"

Silvia laughed, and those golden eyes watched him warily. "Nah. That would have gotten you mauled around here. Not the good kind either. What's with the shirt, though? Hawaiian business casual isn't exactly something I see often, and we get all kinds in here."

"It makes people look…and smile," Nick admitted. It had been a long time since he actually told someone why he wore the clothes he did, though he still left out the part where looking and smiling were the first hooks a hustler needed in their prey. "Plus it's about as different as I can get from my work clothes. I can hide a little easier."

Grinning, Silvia poured a shot of whiskey and placed it in front of Nick. "My treat for the gentleman in hiding."

"You don't have to do that," Nick said, relaxing a little more as he sniffed the drink. A good brand. Not something he would have selected himself. "I was supposed to be taking you out, not the other way around."

Silvia smirked and poured herself a similar drink. "Job has its privileges. Besides, this way I get a little extra time to know if you're worth my time. Gotta screen the foxes that show their faces around here. You know how they can be."

"Sketchy, untrustworthy, shady sorts, those ones," he answered, getting a playful laugh in reply.

"Exactly," Silvia answered, tapping his glass with hers before downing it without so much as a reaction in her eyes. She handled her alcohol even better than Nick did. "Now, tell me what a sly fox is doing in this bar without a vixen on his arm…or a group of coyotes, in Finnick's case. There simply has to be something wrong with you. May as well get it out in the open right away."

Finishing his drink, Nick had barely managed to put the glass down before Silvia had refilled it. "Well, I have a bad habit of being a loner and occasionally convincing foolish people to separate from their money. Not so much of that with the new job, though."

"Well, that's a shame," she said, swirling her own freshly filled glass. "I'd actually love to see that sometime. Too many foxes giving up the classics."

Nick sipped his drink this time, trying to make sure he did not get himself tipsy and embarrass himself. Over drinking had caused enough drama in his life in the last week. Looking around the bar, he saw plenty of people waiting for a server, but Silvia seemed unconcerned.

"If we're playing that game," Nick said, returning his attention to the black-and-white face staring back at him, "what's your vice? Why are you working a bar without someone waiting for you?"

"I'm hoping someone is waiting for me right now," she answered, her smirk more than a match for his own. Nick felt a little intimidated as she managed to hold a stare longer than he could, only blinking when he looked away.

"I meant before I got here."

Silvia shrugged and looked around the bar, her ears perked and tilting as she seemed to listen to everything around them. "Lots of vices, I suppose. Drink too much—"

"Not always a bad thing."

"—play too rough sometimes—"

Nick choked a little on his drink.

"—and don't really like being told what to do, unless I specifically asked for it."

Nodding toward the cougar at the other end of the bar, Nick asked, "Doesn't being told what to do kind of come with having a job like this?"

Silvia grinned very slightly, her teeth accented against her fur. "Not really, no. Though it does help deal with the other two vices very nicely. You get to meet all kinds of interesting mammals, including foxes who their ex's never should have let go."

Nick paused with his drink near the edge of his mouth and realized Silvia's tongue was tracing one of her fangs. She was playing him without a doubt, but he could not say he really objected. Manipulation and conniving were associated with foxes for a reason.

"I guess I can understand that part," Nick admitted, shrugging.

"You're getting over a bad relationship? Absolutely not something I already figured out."

Nick squinted at Silvia and she grinned back at him. He could not be certain if she had guessed on her own or if Finnick had told her about Judy.

"Eight thirty, you said?" he asked in an effort to change topics, leaning a little closer. Silvia did not move away at all, letting his face come quite close to hers. So much for that bluff. "Anywhere in particular you'd like to go after you get off?"

At that she laughed openly, covering her mouth. "After I get off, I'm good with wherever I'm lying. If you mean when I leave work, that's up to you. I know a little diner down the street that's a good place to talk and since they don't allow prey inside, we can discuss about anything we want without hurting any feelings."

Nick felt a little uneasy at the idea of a pred-only diner, but he was not about to bring that up. As he covered his momentary discomfort by finishing his drink, Silvia added one more thing.

"After the diner, probably your place. Assuming you haven't managed to chase me off over dinner."

The delivery was timed perfectly—Nick had been swallowing—and he thought he was going to die as he began coughing on the whiskey. Silvia's expression told him that she had planned that.

"Sounds wonderful," he admitted, still sounding a little hoarse when his voice came back. "Now, we just need to make it another twenty minutes without me saying something stupid."

Silvia nodded with a sorrowful sigh, then looked over her shoulder at a clock over the bar. Shrugging, she took off her apron and tossed it under the bar.

"Marcia," she called, and the female cougar looked up. "Keep the place from burning down and lock up when you leave. I'm taking off. Gotta go before someone says something stupid."

Nick sat up sharply, trying to make sense of what he had just watched, as Silvia made her way back around to his side of the bar. "You're the manager?" he asked once Silvia stood alongside him, wiping a bit of beer off her skirt with a thumb.

"Owner," Silvia corrected. "Were you buying me dinner, or can I count you still being seated at a time like this as your first 'something stupid'?"

Nick was not about to be told twice.

For the next two hours at the nearby diner, the conversation drifted back and forth between Nick's grifting history and more recent times on the ZPD to Silvia's past. She had grown up far to the south of Zootopia, near the coast almost eight hundred miles away, and moved to town only a few years prior. She had three brothers and one sister, none of whom she was close to. She had come to the city with her boyfriend at the time, but left him for reasons best left unmentioned. Finnick had talked up Nick to her intermittently for weeks. All in all, she was fickle, and when she found something she thought should be in her life, she did not back down.

Every bit of it sounded particularly good to Nick, and the way she watched him was entrancing. It was one thing to love Judy's eyes and the kindness there, but Silvia was a predator and made Nick feel like he was, too. She challenged him in everything, from their banter to the way she tried to take control of…well…him. It was a distinct change of pace.

"Now," Nick went on, smiling as he patted Silvia's paw. "I know they're going to kick us out of here, soon. I'm guessing you were playing me earlier…"

Her brows sinking a little, Silvia grabbed his paw a little more tightly than he had expected, but not unpleasantly so. "I've played with you a lot of ways, Nick. If you mean about what we should do after coming here…I'm still up for playing, but I wasn't lying about my intentions."

Nick had to make himself blink. It had been several years of poor dates since the last time things had gotten serious, and never had he been with someone quite so…forceful. The missteps with Judy had been the most active he had been in nearly two years. Still, he had promised Finnick he would give things a fair chance, and he had no reason to object. Breathlessly he agreed, his heart pounding loudly.

The next few minutes were a blur, and Nick could only be certain that they had left the diner before Silvia pushed him against a wall in the alley outside, kissing him and getting him more than ready to lead her back to his place. He barely even realized he soon stood in front of his apartment, with Silvia running her claws through the fur below his ears, making his whole body tingle.

"Last chance to scare me off," she said, her breath warm on his ear. "And don't forget, I do play rough."

Nick was fully panicking, yet did not want to back down. He had no idea if he could actually keep up with Silvia. He already knew she was more forceful, more willing to manipulate, and far more blunt than he was. Still, that was not a bad set of traits if they were aimed at him alone. This time he knew what he was walking into, or at least hoped he did.

Opening the door to his apartment, Nick barely had time to remove the key before Silvia pulled him inside, slamming the door closed behind her with a kick. Everything became a rush of sensation and movement as she tore at his shirt—Nick was fairly certain he felt his tie either be ripped off or the fabric actually tear—while her mouth and tongue were all around his face. Nick barely knew what to do with someone so…active. Brief thoughts of high school came back to him, but he was not certain that anyone had been quite like this even then.

Before Nick realized that they had made it past the tiny entry hall, he was on his back on his bed, trying to regain some semblance of control over what all was happening. He could feel scratches from his neck to his waist, but he was fairly certain none were deep or out of anger, just enthusiasm.

"Wow…okay," he managed to gasp, as his belt was pulled off. Nick was seriously beginning to feel like he had lost all hope of pretending like he had a say in his evening. "Maybe just…"

Before the thought could complete, he was naked on his own bed, with Silvia atop him, her shirt open and her skirt gone. She bore down on him, pressing her hips against his as she nipped at his neck, making him question why he was even considering objecting. It had been far too long, and she was so very…

…very pushy. Far beyond anything Judy had done, which had scared him at the time. He had been worried about taking advantage, despite assurances otherwise. He had worried about what Judy might think of him if he took her up on their compromised situation, but that thought had not occurred to him here. Silvia and he had already drunk quite a bit, so there was nothing he could point to that made one instance right and the other one wrong. The only difference was that Silvia was…Silvia. She was a fox. That certainly did not change things for Nick, so why was he so scared of ruining things with Judy but not with Silvia?

"And there went the mood." Silvia sighed, hanging her head as her attempts to slide Nick inside her went somewhat…limp. "Let me guess—thinking about the ex?"

Nick reached up, grabbed his pillow, and buried his face in it to hide from the absurdity of the moment. He was naked in his bed with a beautiful vixen who wanted to do anything and everything he had dreamed of, and instead he was worrying about past mistakes and sabotaging himself. That was beyond unfair, and there was nothing he could do to make his mind stop.

"Yep," he muttered into the pillow. "I may be the worst date in the world right now."

Silvia laughed a little and lay down beside Nick with her body pressed against him, though he kept the pillow over his face. "No, not the worst, but also not the first I've been in this situation with. I might have rushed things a little too much for you. I'm sorry, Nick. I've always found that when it's someone that just got out of a bad relationship, it's better to do things without thinking and then work on making it normal afterward. You, I might have to be a bit more gentle with."

Shifting the pillow to only cover his eyes, Nick took a deep breath and tried to convince himself it might be safe to come out soon. "I'm guessing that's the end of the night, thanks to me?"

"Do you want it to be?"

Nick shook his head into the pillow. "I want to have a fairly normal life again and not wreck every chance at a relationship that I find."

"Well, then," she practically purred, and it felt as though she were getting onto her knees. "Let's see if I can't get your mind off the past."

Hot breath and a warm tongue moved down Nick's chest, and he smiled at Silvia's willingness to put up with him and keep trying to entice him. By the time her muzzle passed his waist, all of his self-doubt and worries were forgotten for the moment. He had to drop the pillow to dig his claws into the sides of the bed to keep from letting out far more noise than he wanted his neighbors to hear as her mouth teased him.

Somehow, thoughts of Judy still managed to intrude more than he would have wanted to admit.


	20. Chapter 5-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.4 – New Life**

 **June 22** **nd** **, Wednesday – Canal District**

Judy parked the van a short distance up South Lynxon Street, with the only warehouse in the area visible in the distance, as the sun was beginning to come up. The plan was simple: Her and Nick were the observers and would wait until they saw activity, after which they would call for backup to move in. Officers from the local precinct, as well as most of the officers from theirs, were already on the scene, scattered around the neighboring buildings strategically. Fangmeyer and Wolford specifically were already atop the tallest of the adjacent buildings, with long rifles trained on the warehouse, giving a bird's-eye view of the situation and a last-ditch way to protect anyone that might be endangered when they moved in to seize the building.

"Jenna Loam," Nick said aloud, paging through the file they had gotten back on the raccoon from Monday. "Two stints for public maulings. Looks like she put one person in the hospital for longer than she was in jail. Gambling, racketeering, larceny—not a great person to have around, but not someone who leaps out at me as willing to deal in mammal lives."

Judy smiled, not because of the information he was giving, but for the mere fact that he appeared more willing to talk. Monday had been rough, and she had wondered if they would even make it through the case. With the scheduled strike on the warehouse, they and several other officers had staggered their Tuesday to only come in a few hours to prep, so she had not seen Nick between the end of Monday and when she had pulled up the van. Whatever had happened, an extra day seemed to be making a huge difference in relaxing him.

 _Right_ , she reminded herself, feeling a bit sick to her stomach. _The date. Of course Nick's more relaxed. The poor vixen probably didn't stand a chance against his charm. Hopefully she's right for him._ "Sooo," Judy said, trying to sound playful and not pushy. "You mentioned you had a date Monday night? How'd that go, Slick?"

Nick tried to keep staring at the files in his lap, but Judy could tell he was no longer looking at them.

"That bad?" she asked, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Nah, it went pretty well," Nick admitted, closing the file. "I just wasn't sure I should be kissing and telling. Seemed a little inappropriate. You know, at work."

"We're all friends here, Nick. I'm glad it worked out."

For the first time since she had come back from Bunnyburrow, Nick gave her a smile that she was willing to believe was genuine, and some of the tension faded from the van.

"I hope you two are good for each other," Judy added, reaching over, careful to avoid the wrappings on his paw, and touch his arm…only to have him faintly growl and snatch his arm away. The flinch had been one she recognized as pain, not surprise. "Nick? What's wrong with your arm?"

When Nick did not reply and instead pointedly looked out the window opposite her, Judy carefully studied him. He still tried not to use his left paw, but that was no surprise with the damage he had done to it previously. Once she was paying attention, she spotted thin lines in his fur that she thought at first were just poorly brushed, but one behind his ear was clearly visible with him turned away. That line ran down toward his shoulder, near where she had touched him.

Deep claw marks marred his skin in two or three spots, visible even with him fully dressed.

Reaching up, Judy touched Nick's neck before he knew she was going to, and he yelped a little, covering the scratch and glowering at her. She looked down at her fingers, where a small amount of blood covered her white fur.

"Nick?" she asked, still staring at the blood. "Did you get into a fight?"

"There's some things a little bunny shouldn't be asking questions about."

Judy's ears shot up, and she realized she was not going to back down if what she was guessing was true. "Did she do this to you? Seriously, Nick, that's not okay. A little deeper and you'd need stitches."

"That's between me and her, Judy," he snapped, flicking up the collar of his shirt to cover the deepest scratch. Judy tried to ignore the blood that ended up on his collar and failed. It made her stomach twist painfully to see him hurt and accepting it. "She plays rough. Not something I want to discuss with…you know…some cute bunny."

Now he was just trying to rile her.

"Are you sure you're okay? It never seemed like that's something you would want…"

Nick turned and stared at her in disbelief. "Do you think you're an expert on what I do in my spare time, Hopps? Maybe this is what I like. Maybe it's what I needed. One predator understanding another and being rough. A bunny wouldn't understand that."

Judy sunk back into her seat and crossed her arms, no longer really sure what to say. Nick was right in a sense. She did not understand him anymore and had no right to judge what he wanted to do outside of work. Still, she kept looking down at the blood on her fingers. It took her almost five minutes before she could find anything else to say. The little voice in the back of her mind kept reminding her that she would never have hurt him like that, but she was not sure he cared. It did not matter what she would or would not do, as she was not really a part of his life anymore.

"Nick?" she finally asked softly.

"Yeah, Hopps?"

"If she ever does truly hurt you—and I don't mean just physically—I will dig out my fox taser and have a long talk with her, no matter what you say. Only I get to beat up on my friends."

Finally Nick laughed and kept laughing until he wiped tears from his eyes. "That I believe, Carrots. If and when that day comes, I'm putting my money on you. She's meaner, stronger, and cheats, but I think you're stubborn enough to win in that fight. Maybe even without the taser."

Judy gave him her best grin, but she knew it was forced. She was worried about him. He had changed so much in only a few days. His anger at her, smashing his phone and paw, getting himself into a relationship that left him more battered than any of the sparring in the academy—it all added up to something not being right. With anyone else, Judy would have cornered them, demanded to have the argument out once and for all, but with Nick, she knew he would dig in his heels and try to lie and charm his way out of talking about it. She needed to wait him out.

After the humor had faded, Nick looked at her a bit more somberly. "How is…what's his name? Jack?"

That rather surprised Judy. She could not imagine why Nick cared, but the question was simple enough. "He's fine. Still getting settled in. I don't think either of us were quite ready for—"

Suddenly, Nick sat up straight, his ears so alert that they tilted almost forward. "Judy…they're here."

Across the street, the raccoon—Jenna—was walking up to the warehouse they had been watching. Within minutes, a half dozen different mammals made their way up to the doors. Every one of those that came in after Jenna were dressed shabbily or appeared half-starved. Nick had not been the only one she had coaxed into coming to the warehouse.

"I should be out there with them," Nick said, mostly to himself. "What was Bogo thinking, refusing to let me play up the male prostitute thing?"

Ignoring Nick and picking up her radio, Judy said, "Officers, be on watch. We have movement. Does anyone have eyes on the inside of that warehouse?"

"Roger that" came Wolford's voice in reply. "Broken-out windows on the west side. I've got ten, maybe twelve, moving around on the warehouse floor."

Judy looked at Nick, and he returned her puzzled stare. "Confirm. We've only had seven go in. Confirm numbers."

"Eleven," Fangmeyer answered. "Obviously can't hear them, but it looks like they're talking to a twelfth near some stairs."

"All officers," Judy snapped, looking around the street frantically. There were no other usable entrances to the warehouse, and they had searched it before stationing anyone around it. "I need eyes on how those other five got in there, right now!"

A few seconds passed before Fangmeyer replied. "Those stairs they're at…they go down below the main floor. Schematics of the building say that's sewer access."

"Sweet cheese and crackers, we're going to lose them if we don't move," Judy gasped, thumping the steering wheel with her forearm. Clicking the radio again, she said, "Chief Bogo…orders?"

A deep sigh over the radio let Judy know Bogo was watching from somewhere nearby with binoculars. "All officers, move in. Tranq guns only, unless necessary, as we have six potential hostages mixed with our perps. Tranq everyone and sort it out after. No heroics. Hopps and Wilde will stay put and are backup if things reach the streets…"

Nick's head lifted slightly and his ears perked, a slight smirk easing onto his face. "I know where the nearest sewer exit is. No one would stay down there any longer than they have to, especially running. Hopps, go to South Lynxon and Fourth. Second alley in. Go, go, go!"

Judy started the van before realizing they were disobeying direct orders. As she put the van into gear, she grabbed the radio again. "Chief, Nick has a possible exit point. We're moving to Fourth and South Lynxon." Slamming her paw down on the gas pedal, Judy was actually more than a little surprised by how much power the old dilapidated-looking van had. In under a minute, they were braking near their destination, just as the radio began to go crazy.

"Breach team has been spotted! I repeat, they have eyes on us!"

"Move in!"

"Shots fired! Two mammals armed! Wolford is down! I repeat, Wolford is down!"

Judy's grip on the wheel tightened, and she could not help but bite her lip. Her friends and coworkers were being shot at and there was nothing she could do. Neither of she nor Nick had body armor, so they would be no help during the delicate strike on the warehouse.

"Four mammals tranqed," came Fangmeyer's calm reply, even as gunfire could be heard in the background over the radio. "Five. We have three retreating into the sewer entrance. No eyes on the others."

"EMT is in route for Wolford," Bogo replied, and Judy could hear the fear in his tone. "Do we have someone at his location to stabilize him?"

"Trying to move to him, but taking heavy fire," Fangmeyer called out. "They have a sniper. They knew we were coming! Argh! I'm fine… Moving to a safer position. My weapon's sights are damaged and I can't use my arm, but I think I can get to cover."

Judy looked to Nick and found he was banging his good paw against the dash. He was scared and wanted to do something to help. In her months on the job, Judy had only heard of one gunfight and that had been resolved after two shots. Body armor and lethal weaponry were mostly a precaution for the ZPD. It was rarely intended to be needed.

Nothing about this situation was normal.

"The remaining victims are being used as animal shields," growled Fangmeyer, and Judy heard his tranquillizer gun fire again. "We have seven mammals down in the warehouse. Only the three got out. Two more are taking cover, but the Precinct Five group is closing on them. SWAT Five, do you have them?"

"Two in custody, seven tranqed upon arrival," replied Oswage, a member of the local precinct SWAT. "One dead on a rooftop…wasn't one of the twelve. I've also got two officers wounded. Body armor took the brunt of things. Need more medical teams. Remaining two or more are fleeing by way of the sewer. Unknown position."

Judy tried not to panic. She wanted to be with the other officers and wondered if there was something she could have done to protect them. Still, she had her own job to do. Nervously she reached down alongside her seat and pulled out the tranquilizer gun that had been issued to her.

His paws shaking, Nick drew his own weapon from the glove compartment.

"You ever had to use one of these?" he asked, eyeing the cartridge that held four darts that could drop most mammals in under a minute. "I'll admit, this wasn't my strongest class in the academy."

"Shooting at targets, sure," admitted Judy, trying to ignore the nervous glance Nick gave her as she checked the safety on her weapon. "Never had to fire at another animal. Hoping to keep it that way."

Judy stared at her gun for what felt like a long time before reaching back into the hidden holsters mounted into the side of the driver's seat. She removed a second weapon as well, which was a small standard handgun. The size—necessary to keep Judy from being thrown back by the recoil—meant that if she had to resort to using it, odds were strong that she would do little more than wound larger mammals. Not knowing what was coming, she had to hope it would be enough, should things go that direction. She tucked it into the small of her back and kept her tranquillizer gun in paw.

"Movement in the alley," Nick warned, opening his door and shifting so he had a clear shot.

 _Now or never_ , Judy told herself, only bringing her door open far enough that she could slide out, as it was her only protection against anyone coming from the alley, whereas Nick had the whole vehicle.

From what Judy could see, an old sewer grate was being lifted from below. With a final clang, the grate was tossed against the side of the alley.

Judy advanced slowly, waiting for those coming up to show themselves. There was no sense in announcing her presence until they were bunched up at the grating and unable to escape back underground.

At last a huge gray-skinned hoof came up out of the sewer and the rhino attached to it lifted himself out. He had not noticed Judy, only about ten feet away as he knelt and reached down for another mammal still below.

"Freeze, ZPD!" Judy yelled, leveling her tranquillizer gun and resting her finger on the trigger as she moved out from behind the van door. Slowly, she advanced into the alley. "I want paws in the air right now!"

Chuckling, the rhino looked up at Judy, a slow smile spreading over his face. From the sewer, Judy heard at least one voice echo as whoever was with the rhino began to scramble back down.

"On the ground!" Judy shouted at the rhino, glancing back at Nick, who had moved to the lip of the alley, where the brick wall provided some protection, but allowed him to get close enough that he could hit her target. "Face down on the pavement!"

The rhino lifted his hooves and knelt over top of the sewer opening, but he did not lay down. Instead, he seemed to be daring her to approach, likely stalling while his compatriots escaped.

A choked shout behind Judy let her know that she had taken too long and when she turned, she saw Nick hit the ground as another figure darted out of sight. Nick was still moving, but his weapon lay almost ten feet from him. Even with her less-refined sense of smell, Judy could pick up the scent of Nick's blood on the air.

Reaching down to grab her radio with her free paw, Judy pressed the button on it without lifting it to her mouth. "Officer down at Fourth and…"

Pain exploded across the entire right side of her as Judy was driven back into the alley wall. She rolled with the impact, but the whole world spun and she struggled to keep hold of her weapon. Huge furless hands grabbed her by the neck and shoulders, attempting to get a solid grip to crush her against the bricks behind her.

Firing indiscriminately in the direction she felt the arms of the rhino coming from, Judy heard the impact of each dart as it connected, though the pressure against her collarbone and ribs did not waver. When her weapon began clicking loudly, the cartridge empty, she reached back for her other gun, but it was already gone.

Judy twisted as best she could, trying to force the rhino to adjust his attempts to grab at her. Finally, he slipped ever so slightly and she managed to get her legs up under his wrist and kick. That immediately released the rhino's hold and both fell to the ground panting.

Despite the alley spinning from the impact with both the rhino and the wall, Judy quickly spotted her regular handgun and slid across the pavement toward it. Thankfully, as her paws closed on the handle, she saw the rhino collapse beside her with four darts stuck in his chest, his eyes unfocused. The tranquilizer darts had finally kicked in.

"Nick!" Judy eked out as she managed to get up limp down the alley to where she could see her partner also struggling to stand. Slapping the radio at her hip, she yelled, "Officer down! Where is my backup?"

She made it to Nick's side and found he was bleeding badly from a deep gash on the back of his head, as well as claw marks across his shoulder and neck. Pressing her paws to the worst of the wounds, she tried to slow the bleeding.

"Hang in there, partner," she pleaded, wishing she did not feel so sick from trying to keep her friend's blood from seeping through her fingers. "Hold on. Medical team is on their way. Don't die on me. You've got someone waiting for you at home. Fight for that."


	21. Chapter 5-5

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.5 – New Life**

 **June 22** **nd** **, Wednesday Late Afternoon – Zootopia Precinct One**

Judy endlessly bit at her thumbclaw, pacing around the precinct cafeteria. She had no doubt the few mammals to stop by were aware that her nerves had her more jittery than any amount of coffee could have accomplished. She was tired and felt sick, but there was no chance of convincing herself to get off her paws. Each time she tried to sit, she ended up tapping her paw so quickly that it began to hurt. Far easier to pace.

The door to the cafeteria opened, and Judy's ears tracked that direction instinctively.

"They have released Wilde, and he is on his way back from the hospital after a few stiches," Chief Bogo told her, walking past Judy to the coffee pot. Once he had filled a cup, she could hear him turn to face her and lean on the counter. "Why weren't you there with us?"

"He wouldn't want me to be there," she answered quickly, without taking her claw out of her mouth or looking Bogo in the eyes.

"You're answering the wrong questions, Hopps. I meant, why you weren't checked out for your injuries. You were punched by a rhino. You're lucky to even be alive. If he had connected solidly, we would not be having a conversation. Now, which of the two questions would you rather answer? The question of why you did not get checked out, or why Nick would not want you, of all mammals, to be at his side."

Judy stopped pacing and looked up at the chief nervously. "Neither?"

"I don't believe that was an option I gave you," he replied firmly, giving her no room to argue. Bogo sipped his coffee for a moment, then took off his glasses and tossed them onto the counter beside him. "I can see the bruising even through your fur, Hopps. Your collar and your arm are almost black. Go get yourself checked. Something is bound to be broken or close to it."

"Once I'm sure…"

"Enough!" Bogo snapped and Judy felt herself shrink away instinctively at the roar. "I have put up with more than enough from you two. Right now I have two officers from Precinct Five in intensive care. Delgato may never fire a weapon again after the shot to his shoulder, but he will live. Wolford…his wife is with him in case he doesn't wake up. I've just spent four hours assuring everyone, from the media to the mayor, that we have this under control, no matter what the truth might be. I am in no mood to put up with shit from you and Wilde as well. Now…talk."

Judy felt smaller than usual under Bogo's glare. She went to hug herself protectively, but the simple act hurt so much, she had to let her arms hang. Every inch of her torso ached, making breathing difficult. Turning her head was excruciating. Still, those were not her greatest concern. "I wasn't watching my partner," she said slowly, tracing a pattern on the tile floor with a toe. "This is my fault."

"Oh, stop that already, Hopps. This is not your fault. If you had watched Wilde, the rhino would have had you both down far faster than whoever got to him."

"Sir, I almost lost him today. You can say it's not my fault, but do you think I can believe that?"

Sighing, Bogo rubbed his face and finally shook his head. Putting aside his coffee, he leaned back on the counter with both huge arms. "I lost a partner once, Hopps. It destroys you. I will not lie about that. There's a reason I'm not in the field anymore. That said, I know you're lying."

Judy's ears shot up at the accusation. She had never heard Bogo actually accuse one of his officers like that. "Sir?"

"Not to me, Hopps," Bogo corrected, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "You're lying to yourself, and I've had enough. You're here and he's there because you'll start crying when you see him in a hospital. You'll blame yourself no matter what I…or he…tells you."

"He is my partner…"

"Would you please stop?" begged Bogo, closing his eyes. "Do you think I'm stupid, Hopps? I'm tired of the games. This has been the worst day of my career, and I'll not banter with an officer about something everyone seems to know except her."

"Is this about the fight with Nick? We were working on putting that behind us."

"It's about the fact that you're in love with him and don't like to use the words," Bogo snapped and Judy could feel herself sinking into utter panic. "I know it's against regulation, but it happens. I know it, you know it, Clawhauser has made sure half the precinct knows it. What is really going on?"

Judy's world collapsed and she began crying without realizing it had even been coming. "I screwed up, Chief. I scared him away. Scared him into someone else's arms. This is my fault. If I had let him transfer to another officer, he wouldn't be in the hospital now."

Kneeling, Bogo reached out to put an arm around Judy's shoulders but appeared to reconsider. Given the ache across her collarbone, she was a little thankful he did. "Judy," he said gently, letting both arms drop to his sides. "Not everything works out the way we want. Ask my ex-wives. I know this hurts, but you will find someone else. We make mistakes and we grow from them. If you two are meant to be…"

The chief trailed off as the door to the room opened again. A quick look up at Bogo's face told her exactly who was behind her. Frantically she wiped away the last of her tears and tried to steady her breathing.

"Nick?" she asked, turning.

Standing in the doorway, Nick had his head wrapped so one ear was completely covered, though blood already showed through the white dressings. His left arm hung in a sling, and fresh bandages now covered other sections of the arm above his cast. Smaller bandages lay across some of the deeper cuts on his neck and shoulder from his date—likely the hospital had been unsure which were from the attack and which were not. Despite it all, he was smiling.

"Still alive," Nick said, clearly trying to sound smug. "Rhino can't kill you, and a lion or something similar can't kill me. I'll call that a good day."

Judy ran to Nick without thinking and grabbed him in a wonderful—albeit excruciating—hug.

After a moment, he hugged back with his good arm. "You look like hell, Fluff," he told her, slowly pushing her away and eyeing the bruises on her arm, following them up to her neck with his eyes. "I don't suppose Bogo convinced you to take my place at the hospital?"

Judy tried to glower at him but could not manage to keep the joy at having him still standing off her face. "How are your ribs?"

Looking thoroughly confused, Nick lifted his arm to gaze at his side. "Nothing happened to my…"

Punching him in the side, Judy grinned smugly when he stumbled and tried to catch his breath. "That's for scaring me, Nick."

"Hey, now!" he exclaimed, putting up a paw to keep her away. "I'm fragile. No punching the fox."

"You might have to tell your girlfriend that," Judy blurted out before she realized she was about to. Wincing, she looked over her shoulder at Bogo, whose stern glare told her that she had just messed up again. "I mean…"

"Nah, you're right," Nick admitted, laughing weakly. "May have to hide from her for a few days while I heal up. Maybe Bogo can put us both in witness protection so our significant others don't hurt us more."

Judy heard Bogo's snuffle of surprise and she felt much the same. "Our…wait, what?"

Before Nick could try to dig himself out of whatever hole he was working on, Clawhauser leaned into the room.

"Chief…oh, and you two!" the cheetah exclaimed. "Everyone's back! Wonderful! I wanted to let you all know that they have the rhino in interrogation room one. The others we caught, Higgins was saying, are completely ignorant of what the plan might have been. This guy's the only one who might have information."

Judy grabbed Nick's paw despite his efforts to stop her, leading him through the precinct until they reached the watching area for the interrogation room. Slipping inside, they joined Fangmeyer, whose right arm hung in a sling like Nick's, though Judy could smell far more blood on him. Fangmeyer did not look up as they entered, his eyes locked on the rhino, who they could watch through one-way glass.

Climbing up onto one of the chairs, Judy leaned on the glass to watch. A moment later Nick managed to drag himself up beside her.

"All right," Higgins was saying, taking a seat across from the rhino. He held up a folder full of paper that Judy could see was his criminal history. "Antonne Kenyin. Assault, battery, more assault, still more assault—you don't really do much else, do you?"

The rhino grinned slowly and shrugged. "Stick with what you're good at, ya'know?"

Higgins chuckled and set aside the folder. "First time assaulting an officer. Want to talk about what you were doing in that warehouse? It's about the only chance you have of a deal. Pretty sure that trying to kill one of ZPD's finest is something the judges frown on."

Antonne laughed at that, his voice deep enough that Judy could feel it in her ears and through the glass. "Did I? Pretty sure I just had some bunny come running up to me with a gun. Don't remember her saying she was an officer. I know I woulda stopped if she did. Just self-defense, ya'know? What would you do if some munchkin pulled a gun on you? Not the best part of town, after all."

"Do we have footage from the alley?" Nick asked, looking past Judy at Fangmeyer for confirmation. "I know she identified herself."

"No," the tiger answered, his jaw barely moving. He looked to Judy to be angry enough to attack the rhino if not for the glass between them. "Every camera in the area was tampered with. We have no video, no witnesses, and with you two out of uniform…this is probably dropping to simple assault. We already have some bondsman in the lobby trying to post bail. Unless Antonne changes his mind quickly, he'll be out before nightfall."

"He tried to kill me!" Judy argued, not believing her ears.

"I know," Fangmeyer replied, bristling a little. "None of us can be absolutely sure we saw him in the warehouse, though. We can't prove anything. I went through over two hundred photos from the raid and none show him anywhere until the alley."

Inside the room, Higgins was still plodding forward with the interrogation. "Who were you with down in that sewer?"

"With?" the rhino asked, spreading his arms as though the question was crazy. "I went down there to get away when your officers opened fire on the block. Can't blame a mammal for hiding when a bunch of overzealous cops start shooting."

Judy thumped her paw on the windowsill angrily. "He can't get away with this…"

Alongside her, Fangmeyer quickly said, "He will. We're the ones who will be looked at as soon as the media hears about this, which should be any minute. The only witnesses we have are the victims, and they're scared and not talking. Their sniper took a bullet to the skull, so he won't be telling us anything."

"How did they know we would be there?" Nick asked, though Judy knew it was not something he expected either of them to actually know. "Judy, give me his file. Over there…"

She looked around near the window and saw a copy of Antonne's file had been left in a tray. Taking it, she passed it to Nick, who quickly paged through it.

"Six years of attacking people and getting bailed out or pleading to lesser charges," Nick muttered, staring at the page intently, as though something might leap out at him. "Before that, moved to Zootopia from…he's from the south coast?"

Fangmeyer nodded at that. "South coast for him and the sniper. Deep south, near the coast itself, probably two hundred miles from the nearest true city. Don't see too many mammals migrate from there. Region's still pretty lawless. Does explain the willingness to fight. I know I wouldn't last long in that region, so I can only imagine how rough it is for prey—even large prey."

Judy scowled up at the tiger for that, but he did not seem to notice. Her attention was then drawn back to Nick, who was staring through the pages in his paw. He was lost in thought, his green eyes unfocused. "What medicine did they give you?" Judy asked, putting a paw on his arm in case he was about to pass out. "Do you need to go sit?"

"No. Definitely not," Nick muttered, handing her the file. "I do need to go home, though. Not feeling really well. You'll need to hold down the fort without me."

Judy nodded in agreement, but she doubted Nick even noticed as he climbed off the chair and hurried out of the room.

The remainder of the interrogation was no better than the beginning, and eventually Higgins gave up and left. Fangmeyer snarled angrily and stalked away, following Higgins, leaving Judy to wonder what she should do. The mammal who had very nearly killed her and allowed someone else to nearly kill Nick was sitting twenty feet away and would be allowed out of jail within a day. That was not something she had been prepared for.

Leaving the room, Judy wandered down the hall in a daze, trying to make sense of everything. She almost ran into Bogo's leg in the process, and she jumped a little when she realized he was standing in front of her.

"Wilde went home to sleep off his injuries," the chief said, squinting as he stared at Judy. "You need to do the same. You look like you're going to be sick."

"I might be," she admitted. "Will he…do you think he might come after us…?"

"No, but we can't be too careful," Bogo told her. "I've already dispatched patrols to keep an extra eye on both of your homes. There's not much more we can do other than that. Go home and get some rest. The city will still be here tomorrow."

Judy begrudgingly agreed and made her way out of the station slowly. She was stopped every few feet, as each employee or officer recognized that she had been a part of the raid. Some offered praise or sympathy, while others asked if she knew whether the injured were stable. More often than not, Judy had to admit she had no idea, and she sank lower and lower into despair each time she told someone that she did not know if Wolford was even alive. It felt like another punch from the rhino every time she had to let another mammal down. Most said something supportive about her or Nick's injuries, but she barely heard them.

At long last, she reached the entrance of the precinct and stopped by the last mammal in the building: Clawhauser. Unlike the others, he did not try to drag her into conversation, which made her want to talk to him all the more.

Approaching the inner side of the desk, Judy saw Clawhauser was nervously watching a small television, turned to local news. He was trying to stay updated on anything that might not be relayed to him. As he watched, Judy could see he was holding a somewhat crumpled photograph—the one that had been hanging behind his desk until earlier that day.

"You all right, Benji?" she asked, leaning against the side of the desk, offering him a reassuring smile.

"Oh!" he exclaimed, looking down and quickly setting aside the picture. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? You look terrible!"

"Ah, it's not so bad," Judy lied, trying to keep her smile in place. She looked down at her arm against the desk and realized her fur appeared as though it had darkened several shades from the bruises under it. If her face and chest aches were any indication, half her body was that badly bruised. "Could have been worse."

Taking a deep breath, Clawhauser looked around the lobby, clearly making sure they were alone. "How is Nick? I heard you two…that you weren't…um…"

"He's recovering," she replied immediately, flinching a little at what he was trying to say. Bogo had not been kidding. Everyone thought they knew what was going on…and guessed poorly. She was not certain if it would be harder to explain that she had chased Nick off by accident or let them think he had found someone new without her mistakes. "He went home to let his girlfriend baby him."

Glancing up, Judy thought she was going to be sick when she saw the sadness in Clawhauser's eyes. He blinked away the expression quickly, but not before she knew exactly what he wanted to say and how demeaning it would have sounded.

"What about you?" she asked, trying to move the conversation forward and away from her failed personal life. "Going to visit in the hospital, I'm guessing?"

"No, no," the cheetah replied, touching the picture on his desk. "I know I wasn't part of…all that…but someone is insisting I call tonight after they heard about things on the news. Something about dangerous jobs. I…um…I think I'll probably be on the phone most of the night."

Rising up on her toes, Judy got a better look at the picture and realized it was of Clawhauser and one of the tiger dancers from Gazelle's group.

"Wow, Benjamin," she exclaimed, smiling at him. "Congratulations."

"Oh…you know…" Clawhauser stammered, looking embarrassed. "It's not…I mean…long distance…"

Reaching across the desk as far as she could, Judy managed to touch his paw. "If it makes you happy, who cares? Life takes work."

Before Clawhauser could say something to force her to reflect on her own life, Judy made her escape and hurried out of the precinct.

The trip back to her apartment was uneventful, and thankfully none of the others on the subway recognized her, though a few gave her concerned looks. There was not much she could do to hide the bruises, so Judy gave those animals half-hearted "oops" looks that she hoped would assure them that she was not in life-threatening peril.

At long last Judy tromped up to her apartment. The enormity of the day still had her rattled, but she desperately wanted to sleep before she allowed herself to start thinking about the details. That likely was not going to be possible and she knew it. Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the door and stepped inside, an overly fake smile plastered on her face.

"Judy!" Jack practically yelped, running from where he had been sitting in front of the television. "I heard what happened! Are you…? Sweet cheese and crackers, Judy…that has to hurt. I promise not to hug you."

Judy nodded and let her smile fade as she closed the door behind her. "I got off easy. It's mostly my pride. Some of the others…"

Jack took her paw and began examining the bruises, carefully adjusting her fur so he could see them better. Even the movement of her fur stung. "You sure nothing's broken?"

"Fairly sure," she admitted, pulling her arm away so she could collapse onto her bed. "We'll see if I can stand tomorrow."

Wringing his paws nervously, Jack seemed unsure what to do with himself. "Can I fix you something to eat? I think we still have some microwave dinners from the ones I picked up the other day. I can probably get you some ice or a hot cloth."

Judy laughed and then gasped, clutching her ribs as she settled into the middle of the bed. "I don't think I could eat anyway. We'll talk about an ice pack tomorrow."

They stayed like that for several minutes, Judy staring at the ceiling and wishing she could sink into the bed, and Jack staring at her with that worried expression she so hated.

"I…I heard a fox was one of the injured," he finally offered, sounding as though he had been trying to decide if he should say anything. "Was it him?"

"He'll be fine," Judy replied, rolling onto her less-bruised side and pulling her knees up to her chin. She wanted to get under the covers to better hide, but that would require far too much movement. "That's about all I know. He won't let me ask too many questions."

Jack scowled and came over, sitting beside her. "Why didn't you invite him over or something? If he's as rattled as you are, it might be good for both of you to recover together."

"You hate the very idea of him, Jack," Judy snapped back, harsher than she had intended. "What makes you think I'd bring him home even before all this? Besides, he has someone else taking care of him now."

Sighing, Jack reached past her and picked up the stuffed fox she kept alongside her pillow. "It doesn't matter if I don't like him. It matters if you do. I still don't like him, but I'm sorry for anything awful I did say about him. That wasn't fair to you. I should have said that before you two had your fight. I know you were trying to get me to accept him before we got into town, but I made that harder on you than I should have."

"You still can't eat the last flower."

Jack's expression lightened immediately at that. "You see right through me. Everything I said was just to eat a purple flower, not because I care about you hurting or how you feel about…him."

Judy sat up and gave Jack a kiss on the cheek before taking the stuffed animal from him and clutching it tightly. Closing her eyes, she tried very hard not to let any of it get to her. She even succeeded for a little while.


	22. Chapter 5-6

**The Pursuit, Chapter 5.6 – New Life**

 **June 22** **nd** **, Wednesday Evening – Savannah Central**

Nick arrived at his apartment before dark, his head pounding too badly for him to really pay much attention to his surroundings at first. The main room was fairly trashed—nothing out of the ordinary there, other than a few pieces of Silvia's clothing added to the mess—but the lights in the other rooms were off. She had not been back yet. He had wondered if she might be waiting for him when he got in, especially with the news of the day, but the apartment was deathly quiet.

Closing the door behind him, Nick went to the couch and collapsed. Though realistically his injuries were not as bad as Judy's, he had lost a lot of blood and had been warned that he might feel faint. The doctors had not been wrong.

Judy's injuries haunted him. He had seen the rhino charge, but the first blow to his head came as he tried to take a shot to save her. When he hit the ground, Nick had honestly believed Judy was dead. Thankfully, when he woke in the hospital, she had not been there to see him frantically searching for her and yelling her name while crying. The doctor had assured him that his secret was safe and chalked it up to delirium from blood loss.

Nick turned his head to stare longingly at the hall to his bedroom, but getting there was going to be a struggle. However, the bed would be far more comfortable on his aching head than the threadbare couch and whatever random clothing was balled up under him.

Groaning, he rolled off the couch onto his knees and then got up from there. He staggered into the bedroom and flicked the light switch with his tail—the only part of him that did not hurt. As soon as he did, he stopped.

The bed was a disaster. They had been a bit reckless the day before with the extra time his day off had given them. The sheets were mostly scattered about the room, and his pillow was on the floor. The scene would have made him think that a half dozen people had thrown quite the party, had he not been there for it himself. Despite all of Silvia's prompting and enthusiasm, he still was having a lot of trouble accepting that this was what he wanted. Moreover, he struggled to convince himself that any of it made sense, given that he had yet to really get himself anywhere near as eager as Silvia always seemed to be. For the most part, he had managed to talk Silvia into cuddling and little else, though that was a fight he knew he was eventually going to lose.

Looking down at the pillow by his toes, Nick saw bloodstains on it. Touching the side of his neck where Judy had found the scratches that morning, he realized it was his blood on the pillow. He had bled a lot more than he had believed. That much blood lost was certainly beyond his comfort zone.

"Yeah, that's not going to be okay," he told himself, kicking the pillow onto the bed. "Definitely need to have a talk about this. At least when I was with Judy…"

Nick stopped himself and cringed. He had to keep catching himself like that. That phrase and several more like it were the core issue between himself and Silvia thus far. Everything she did, he compared or contrasted with Judy or with how he guessed Judy might behave. Comparing a bunny to a fox was going to leave him confused in a lot of ways. That was not fair to either of them and certainly not helping him try to settle into his first relationship in…

He blinked as he began doing math on his fingers. _Wow, it actually has been a really long time._

"Nick?" Silvia called out from the entryway. "You here?"

Easing himself onto the bed to help protect against a surprise hug, Nick called back, "Bedroom, trying to find a way to lay down that doesn't result in bleeding."

Coming down the hall quickly, Silvia's gaze raced across his bandaging. "I heard something on the news. Are you all right?"

"Yeah, great," he griped, lying back on the pillow. Nick slowly adjusted the positioning of his arm to keep some of his weight off the claw wounds on his shoulder. He was starting to regret declining the painkillers the doctors had offered. "Just another amazing day with the ZPD."

Silvia sat beside him, leaning back and forth to study what little was visible of his wounds. Touching his cheek with her claws, she turned his face to look up at her. "Don't joke around. Are you okay?"

"I am," he admitted, trying to keep from saying anything truly biting. "Hurting, but okay. I don't think whoever attacked me had time to finish me off."

Touching the bandage on his head, Silvia frowned. "They probably weren't trying to finish you off. If they had your back, it wouldn't take much to kill you. Not once you were down and bleeding."

"Fair share of scuffles as a child?" he asked wryly.

"I have my fair share this week," Silvia replied without a hint of humor. She helped him move the pillow so he could sit up a little easier. "I didn't exactly grow up in the best neighborhood and that bar isn't quiet."

Nick kept his smirk from showing. He had wanted to lead the conversation that direction, and she made it easier than he had expected. "There may have been a tongue in my ear when we were talking about your home last—"

"That does sound like me."

"—but you mentioned you moved here from the south coast?"

"I did," Silvia answered, her attention on adjusting some of his bandages. "If you were looking for a vacation place, I don't recommend it. Still pretty old-world in that region. None of this 'we can all get along' garbage that they preach in Zootopia. Most of the towns don't even have roads yet."

"What do you know about the criminal groups from there?"

Silvia froze and slowly looked down into his eyes. "Why?"

"We've caught two mammals from that region, both with ties to organized crime. All we know right now is that they're kidnapping the homeless and selling them to the highest bidder. I was hoping you might know more about those groups."

Relaxing a little, Silvia nodded. "Unfortunately, I do. They aren't exactly criminals in those parts, but I know what you mean. Usually they sell prey species as personal servants. Might makes right around that region. Prey loses no matter how you think about it. Even some predators. You piss off the wrong person…"

When Silvia's golden eyes clouded and she looked away, Nick began to understand more about her behavior than he had meant to. "How bad?"

"A few beatings each week," she admitted, shaking her head, her ears flattening back. "Pretty easy work, though, if you don't count some of the more creative abuses and demands. Foxes aren't very high up the food chain, so we were only a little better than prey. Got out of there as quick as I could and moved here."

Taking a shuddering breath, Silvia seemed to distance herself from the memories and straighten her shoulders, her ears and tail perking again. "Do you know anything about the people doing this? I might be able to tell you more if I had more information."

"We don't have much," Nick admitted. When Silvia's face sank sadly, he brushed the back of his claws across her cheek. "We'll find them. Don't worry. So far we just have a rhino and a leopard from those parts that were part of the attack. Those, plus whoever got to me."

Nick wondered if he should elaborate about Antonne and the dead leopard, but opted to keep things simpler.

Silvia slowly lay down beside him, tucking her head into the crook of his good arm. "Sounds like you've got a lot of work ahead of you. I'll be nice and let you get some rest this time."

Nick chuckled and reached for his phone, still in his shirt pocket, thinking to check the schedule for the next day. Before he could turn it on, Silvia grabbed it from his paw and put it in her own pocket.

"Getting a break from me to rest means you actually need to rest," she warned, eyes narrowing. "No phone, no terrible movies, not even a trip to the bar. The sooner you heal, the sooner you can solve this case."

"Eh, not too worried. Judy will probably solve it. Doesn't even need me."

Silvia slid her chin onto his chest. "So she's the persistent one?"

"Stubborn is more like it. Nothing ever makes her stop. I'm just around to keep her on track. Not sure that bunny ever makes a mistake, though."

The smile that crept onto Silvia's face made Nick a bit more nervous than he normally was with her. "She let me have you. I suppose she does make some mistakes."

"I suppose she did."

Lying back, Nick tried to relax into the comforting moment of having Silvia in his arm and a few hours to sleep without fear of being mauled—by anyone, even if well-intentioned. After a minute, he sniffed and realized he could barely smell Silvia. She normally smelled of the bar and her natural scents, as well as any random extra things she had passed or done during the day. This time he only picked up soaps and perfume.

"Did you bathe right before coming over?" he asked, a little surprised.

"I did," Silvia answered quickly. "Some drunk threw up on my paws. Even had some on my tail. I think I spent an hour scrubbing everything off me. Saw the news when I got done and rushed over. Is there a problem with having a clean fox in your bed?"

"Nah," he admitted, smirking. She was leaving something out, but he was too tired to care. "Though it does make you probably the only clean thing in this apartment."

"We'll work on that sometime when you aren't bleeding on everything. Even my bar is cleaner than this place."

Nick grinned as Silvia nuzzled his neck, showing the first hint of true affection he could think of that did not involve him getting pounced and bitten.


	23. Chapter 6-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 6.1 – Understanding**

 **June 27** **th** **, Monday – Savannah Central**

Judy winced as her side ached as she reached across the hood of a car to slide a ticket onto the windshield. The whole morning had been an endless series of pain and struggles to get from one task to the next, without having time to catch her breath. If anything, taking two days off had only made the aches feel that much worse on Monday.

With so many officers injured the previous week, the ZPD was having most of the remaining officers spread their duty across different jobs. They also brought a half dozen cadets onto active duty earlier than normal. Judy was scheduled to do parking duty for two hours, followed by street patrols, check in on cadets, and then verify Nick's paperwork at the end of the day. Chief Bogo had required Nick to stay at a desk—largely due to the bruised bones in his paw and the head wound that still caused dizziness occasionally, though far less frequently after a few days—so that meant someone had to be sure Nick was not simply making up information to fill out forms faster.

As Fangmeyer had predicted, Antonne was released on bail within a day of the raid, though he was still potentially being charged for simple assault. The expensive lawyer that had showed up to get him out of the precinct had managed to get the larger charges dropped and bail granted. That was a new item among the things Judy was trying to keep off her mind. With Nick already on that list and the wounded officers taking up another slot, Judy was running out of safe things she could occupy her mind with. Thankfully, Wolford was alive, though he had yet to regain consciousness.

Even Jack had been pushing his luck, babying her and insisting on bringing her food in bed all weekend, because of a few bruises. The night before she had taken to hiding in the shower far longer than was probably healthy, just to keep from having anyone worry about her for a few minutes. In the end, it had backfired; Jack and Pronk both stood at the door to the shower, trying to coax her out. From what they said, they thought she had passed out or was trying to drown herself.

Judy flinched and caught her breath as she bumped the edge of a car. She pressed her uniform's arm guard against her lower left ribs and felt a stabbing pain in several spots.

 _Perhaps not just a few bruises_ , she reminded herself. _Once things slow down, I need to get those ribs x-rayed. Definitely a chance of a fracture there somewhere. It can wait until the other officers recover, though. At least the bruises aren't easily visible to others anymore._

Heading back to her car, Judy paused when she felt her phone begin buzzing in her pocket. Normally the only person who would call or text her at work was Nick, but given the last week or so, she guessed her parents had seen a news report or Jack had gotten around to buying his own phone. Given how broke Jack was, it was likely the former, rather than the latter.

Judy went to the side of the road and sat on a bench, deciding a random message was a good enough reason to give her ribs a short rest. Fishing out her phone, she found she had gotten two messages in quick succession. Both were from a number she did not recognize.

 _This is Nick. New number._

And less than five seconds later…

 _Want to get lunch?_

Judy stared at the messages in confusion. She could not fathom why Nick would want to see her, let alone why he would give her his new number after going through the effort to change it. Still, she could not force herself to ignore him. This was the first real contact she had gotten from Nick that hinted that he might be willing to go back to them being friends. Given his love of texting, she took it as a very good sign. Either that or the doctors had given him new medications and he was delirious. Either way, she was willing to take advantage of the moment to spend a little time with him, given the chance.

Taking a very slow breath to steady her nerves, Judy tried to think of precisely how to reply. She did not want to sound as though she was giddy and her heart was racing at the thought of spending alone time with him—even if both were true. More importantly, she wanted to make sure she kept things entirely professional. If she gave any hint of how much she missed him, Nick was likely to back off again in a hurry. She had to play it cool.

 _Can probably do that. When? Where? –J_

Judy nervously tapped the side of her phone, rereading her words and worrying that she sounded desperate. Finally another message came through.

 _12:30. Little hole-in-wall diner in Savannah Central. Directions coming. –N_

Judy bit her lip to keep from squeaking with joy. She had half-expected Nick to back out. He must have really hated doing paperwork if he wanted to take the subway all the way to Savannah Central to meet her. A glance at her phone's clock told her that he must already be on his way if he was going to get there by 12:30.

Another text appeared, giving Judy directions. It was not an area she knew very well, but she made note of the address.

 _On my way. –J_

Hugging her phone to her chest, Judy breathed a sigh of relief. For all the awful things happening lately, getting to sit down and patch things up with Nick was a true break from bad news. She even thought she might be able to talk about the more embarrassing aspects of their issues without panicking, if it meant going back to a solid friendship.

Judy put away her phone and headed for her cruiser. She barely had enough time to make it to the diner as it was. Nick must have been walking into the subway when he sent the first message, or had ducked out earlier and was in hiding at the diner from Bogo. Shaking her head at the idea of him fleeing the precinct and all the paperwork, she reminded herself that his childishness was likely going to mean more work for her. Still, she was willing to chalk that up as a good thing if it meant getting to spend time with him.

It took Judy twenty minutes to reach her destination, but when she did, she balked. The diner—even after checking her phone to be sure she had the right address—was unmarked, and the neighborhood did not look overly inviting. Around the entrance to the diner, a half-dozen predators stood about, glaring at her police car. They glowered even more, some going so far as to openly snarl at her, when she hopped out.

 _Okay, Nick, your taste leaves much to be desired_ , Judy told herself, offering polite smiles to the wolves and lions she passed on her way inside. _This food better be amazing. If Finnick recommended this place, I will hurt him._

As she reached the door to the diner, another text came in.

 _Table at the back with coffee cup on it. Brb. –N_

Judy stared at the text, trying to figure out what Nick was up to. Shrugging off his oddities, Judy headed into the diner and made her way down the long center aisle of the place. After the gruffness of the mammals outside, she kept her attention on the back of the diner, where she could see a lonely table with an empty cup of coffee on it, rather than the patrons who all seemed to be glaring at her. The empty cup let her know Nick must have snuck out of the precinct well before contacting her.

 _Not a cop restaurant_ , Judy realized, wishing she had been in civilian clothes. Usually Bogo made sure that the officers knew where the hostile parts of town were, but this was a new one. _Just be calm and they can complain to each other all they want._

With a bit of a bounce, Judy was able to get onto the stool at the table without too much pain. Settling in, she picked up one of the menus and began skimming. To her shock, the place was one of the very few in Zootopia that served chicken, eggs, and fish, in addition to mixed meals. From what she could see, there were not even many insect-based items. She began to frantically search for anything that she could actually eat, but nothing on the menu was free from some form of meat. At best she could order a drink and maybe desert, though she was fairly skeptical after reading the descriptions on other items.

"Nick knows better," she muttered, turning the page of the menu as she heard the stool across from hers compress as it was sat on. "Nick, why did you pick this…?"

Judy's words failed her as a single black-furred finger lowered her menu to the table. Across from her sat a silver fox female, whose golden eyes seemed threatening. She was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a buttoned old shirt and Judy instantly picked up a strong hint of alcohol that lingered around her. Though not as tall as Nick, this fox appeared a little stockier, hinting at a willingness or capability to fight that Nick did not possess.

"So you're Judy," she said, matter-of-factly, ears perking attentively. "I expected…I don't know…maybe something more impressive. Taller, perhaps. Definitely less nose-twitching and fear in your eyes. Didn't take him for the type to spend time with a coward."

Judy looked around the diner nervously. There were only two stools at her table. As she watched, a burly cougar moved to block the aisle—her only route to the door. The movement was so deliberate that Judy could not help but feel like she was being cornered.

"Who are you?" Judy asked, returning her attention to the fox across from her. "Where's Nick?"

The silver fox placed a phone on the table in front of Judy. It was the same model she had seen Nick with at the precinct. A single sniff and Judy could pick up traces of Nick on both the phone and the fox across from her.

The fox never took her eyes off Judy. "I decided it was time for us to have a talk. Hopefully he mentioned me. Silvia? Ring any bells?"

Judy tried her best to look relieved, but nothing about the situation felt safe. "Silvia…right. You're his girlfriend?"

Silvia nodded and relaxed her posture very slightly, her tail sinking a tiny bit. "I have a rather large favor to ask of you…bunny."

Her ears lowering, Judy tried not to be offended by the hateful tone in Silvia's voice. "Okay…"

"I want you to quit your job and go back to whatever miserable place you came from," Silvia said, slowly leaning forward until she was looming over Judy. "I want to never see your face in this town again. I want you gone by sunset tomorrow. Final offer."

Despite the seriousness in Silvia's tone, Judy found herself laughing nervously. "Are you kidding? I'm not going anywhere. What's this about?"

Sighing, Silvia pointed to the phone with a slender finger. "Please give that back to Nick."

Still confused, Judy reached out with her right arm to take the phone, only to have Silvia's arm snap out faster than Judy could have expected. Her paw closed easily around Judy's forearm, her claws digging sharply into Judy's uniform arm guard.

"Let me try explaining this in a way something like you might understand," Silvia snarled, bringing her muzzle near Judy's face, baring her teeth with every word. The hot breath made Judy's heart race, a voice in her mind screaming at her to run, to hide under something. A sense of terror that she had never felt around Nick seemed ready to completely overwhelm her. "You leave us alone and you don't get hurt. Is that clear enough?"

Judy tried to move her arm, but Silvia was far stronger than she was—stronger than Judy remembered Nick being. Slowly she began to feel Silvia's claws pressing through the padding of her arm guard, the points pushing into her uniform. The arm guards had been designed to reduce impacts from Judy's jumping and tumbling and the occasional light strike from a blunt weapon or graze from a knife, not to stop stabbings or claws.

"Why are you doing this?" Judy begged, squirming as her paw went numb. Looking back across the diner, not one of the patrons so much as glanced at her. More importantly, there was no exit nearby. The table was strategic—Judy would have to get through half the diner before reaching any door.

"Oh, they won't help you," Silvia purred, actually licking Judy's forehead. "Never been to a preds-only place before, have you? Of course not. Anyone ever told you that your fear is delicious? I will never understand why this city allows your kind to roam freely. You belong on a leash."

With her free hand, Judy reached back, trying to get to her tranquilizer gun, but Silvia pulled her forward partway onto the table, stretching her body so the angle would be more difficult.

"Let's say you manage to slow me down, bunny. There are ten preds in this diner who would love to have a chance to make a cop disappear. Right now, I'm the only thing keeping them from doing it. You can either listen to me, or I can let them have at you. How long do you think a cute little bunny will last against ten wolves and lions? I'm betting not long, so hear me out and don't be stupid. The alternative will be painful and last longer than you can imagine."

Judy was straining to keep from whimpering, which she knew would only encourage the attack. Still, Silvia's claws were fully through her arm guard and poking through her uniform into her fur and flesh beneath.

"I want to be able to pursue things at my own speed," Silvia went on, smiling coldly. "Every time I try to play with my favorite fox, I get to hear all the amazing things about Judy. I thought it was adorable at first—nothing more than harmless hero-worship—and thought I just needed to be patient, but there is a limit to how long I am willing to have a bunny get between me and the person I'm in bed with. If you cost me that much fun in person, you would have died a long time ago. I gave you some leeway. Yet here you are, still in his life, reminding him why you are perfect and I am a second choice."

"I…I never…"

Silvia slammed Judy's arm onto the table and this time Judy could not keep her mouth shut. She yelped in agony as one of Silvia's claws fully punctured her skin, and her shoulder felt as though it had very nearly dislocated.

"Since you clearly aren't very bright, let me try spelling this out," Silvia growled, her eyes catching the light and gleaming. "I am very possessive of my property. I didn't like other children playing with my toys then, and I certainly don't like a bunny luring my fox away as an adult. I want your promise that you will be out of town by tomorrow without a word to Nick. If you fight me on this, I will break your arm right here and now. If you fight me going forward, your remains will never be found."

Judy tapped her forehead on the table, trying to keep her thoughts straight through the pain. Blood had begun to drip off her fingertips. "You don't own him," Judy managed to croak out, still trying to free her arm. "It's Zootopia. No one owns anyone! What is wrong with you?"

"You are so precious." Silvia laughed, easing her grip ever so slightly. "Of course we do. Call it what you want. You obey everything the ZPD tells you should be done, so they may as well own you. Nick does whatever I want because I'm the one in his bed, so I can safely say I own him. Zootopia can call things whatever they want, but the natural order always gives the strong control over the weak. A bear is stronger than I am, but I am certainly stronger than you."

"How well do you think that speech is going to go over when Nick finds out you ambushed me?"

Silvia's amusement fell away instantly. "Bunny, don't push me. Who do you think he will believe? When I tell him that his jealous bunny friend who pushed her luck in the past came after me, he might doubt what I'm telling him at first. But at the end of the day, whose nose is by his ear, whispering? Whose tail does he see when he wakes up? Whose hand or tongue surprises him in the middle of the night? I can torture Nick and he will still trust me because I am in his bed and you are not."

Judy took a long breath, trying to steady herself. She needed Silvia to slip so she did not realize what Judy was up to, and that meant playing to her anger. "That's it? You're willing to hurt or kill someone so you can sleep with Nick? That may be the craziest thing I've heard yet. No wonder he's still dwelling on me."

Roaring in Judy's face, Silvia brought her other paw up to strike.

Judy reached across with her free arm to her trapped one, grabbed Silvia's thumb, and yanked it back and away. For all Silvia's strength, the maneuver worked to pull Judy's arm free, and a loud snap let Judy know Silvia's thumb was likely broken or at least dislocated.

Rolling away, Judy fell backward onto the stool and kicked the table as hard as she could, flipping it and Silvia onto the floor. All around her, the other patrons of the diner scrambled to their paws, and several mutterings of "kill that cop" were easily picked up by her large ears.

Judy hit the floor hard as the stool toppled, and she kept moving toward the glass wall of the diner. Once there, she kicked the nearest window, hoping she might have an easy way out. The glass shook and cracked in spots but did not break.

Knowing she was almost out of time, Judy drew her tranquilizer gun with her off-paw. So often, it had been drilled into them at the academy that they could not use those weapons at close range without injuring or even killing mammals. It was all she had, other than kicking the window endlessly.

Judy swept the chambered dart in her gun across her arm guard to break off the entire needle portion, leaving a wide flat tip that would be useless against another mammal. If she were very lucky, the contained gas used to back the darts to ensure the projectile could pierce even rhino and elephant skin would be enough force to break glass. As she heard the predators closing in and Silvia screaming as she kicked away the table, Judy slammed the gun against the window and pulled the trigger. With a boom, the entire window cracked and spiderwebbed, though her weapon recoiled badly and Judy nearly lost her grip on it as her fingers went numb.

One final kick and the window collapsed, allowing Judy to run for her cruiser through a shower of glass. Once she was underway, she did not ease up on the gas until she was within the parking lot of Precinct One.

 _Silvia is right_ , Judy thought sadly as she parked the car, panting. _Nick won't believe me. Not now. Maybe not ever, if Silvia gets to him first. If she reaches him, he'll come after me, and I don't know that I can make myself hurt him._

Clutching her arm to her side to slow the bleeding, Judy ran from the parking lot into the precinct. She slid to a stop in front of Clawhauser's desk, frantically bouncing until he saw her ears over the lip of the desk.

"Clawhauser!" Judy exclaimed, wishing she could grab the desk and pull herself up, but with one arm, that was not likely to end well for her. "Where's Nick?"

The large cheetah leaned until he could look down at her. "Judy? Aren't you supposed to be on patrol?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" she snapped, trying not to lose her patience entirely. "Where is he?"

"He got a call a few minutes ago and ran out the same way you ran in. Are you okay? Your arm…"

"I need to know where he went!"

"He said he had to go meet with his girlfriend… Oh…is that… I'm sorry…"

Judy rubbed at her face in exasperation. "I'm not worried about whether it's rude or not, Clawhauser. Do you know where he actually went? Where she lives?"

A loud buzz stopped Judy, and Clawhauser looked at her belt, where her phone was lit and vibrating. Reaching down, Judy slowly pulled out her phone and saw it was the same number that had texted her earlier that day. _Silvia_. Answering, Judy brought the phone up and did not wait for the caller.

"Okay, you listen to me," Judy started, angrily pacing away from Clawhauser's desk. "Whatever game you're playing, if you make me come after you—"

A familiar sigh cut Judy off, and every inch of her fur stood on end as she realized who was holding the other end. Judy had just played into Silvia's paws. Her ears flopped limply to her back and Judy nearly dropped the phone.

"I thought she was lying," Nick said, his tone hinting at emotional exhaustion. "Thank you for confirming it. I'll meet you in front of your apartment. You can have my badge. Bogo would rather keep you of the two of us, anyway."

Judy began frantically searching for what to say, but could only find panicked stammers. After a few seconds, Nick hung up. Redialing him, she went straight to voicemail.

"Clawhauser," Judy said, still staring at her phone. "Dispatch an extra squad car to my home address. I may be wrong, but I think something awful is about to happen. Delay them ten minutes to give me time to find out. I'll call in if we can cancel."


	24. Chapter 6-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 6.2 – Understanding**

 **June 27** **th** **, Monday – Savannah Central**

"I swear, that little monster is insane."

Nick struggled to keep his feelings on both sides of the issue in check as Silvia ranted—not at him, but at the very idea of Judy. He had already endured nearly ten minutes of it, and he dreaded having to take a side—something he could feel Silvia trying to lead him toward. It had been hard enough knowing how much Silvia hated the idea of him still partnering with someone she considered his ex, especially given his issues with intimacy, but now there was no disguising things.

Pressing the cloth-wrapped ice pack against the swollen bruise that ran the length of Silvia's muzzle, Nick felt further pangs of guilt when the cloth came away crimson yet again. The bleeding seemed unwilling to stop and Silvia could not breathe through her nose at all. Even if she had not explained in great detail what happened, his first thought was that the wound was very similar to one Judy had delivered with a kick to a mugger the day she had come back from sick leave.

For whatever reason, Judy had kicked a table into Silvia's face, that much Nick was certain of. He knew Judy's capability for kicking and idly wondered if Silvia had gotten off easy. A direct kick to her head could have broken bones or possibly even killed her.

"Let's start at the beginning," Nick insisted, tired of trying to sort out the crying babble from the angry demands for a chance to stand up for herself. He was worried about Silvia, but more than anything, he wanted to understand why Judy would have done this. "You were at the diner."

Silvia nodded and snuffled, taking the ice from him so she could keep it pressed while she talked. Pulling her knees to her chin, she took several deep breaths before continuing. As she shifted, Nick noticed again that her thumb on her right paw was swollen and dislocated. That injury stood out as odd among her others, but he could not find a way to account for it. To him it looked like someone had intentionally pulled the thumb to break her hold on something, but nothing in her story covered that. Such an injury was one officers were trained to use to break holds by stronger mammals.

"The diner you and I went to," she explained nasally, eyes on the ground but focused far away. "I was having lunch when she came marching in like she owned the place. I wasn't sure what to make of it and thought maybe the police were cracking down on pred-only establishments."

"They aren't too fond of them," Nick admitted, sitting beside her. He could not remember anytime that Silvia had cried before or shown a hint of weakness. The way she curled up and then leaned against him reminded him far too much of Judy when she was feeling vulnerable. "What did she say?"

Silvia snuffled again and looked around, apparently trying to remember. "Something about her wanting me to go. She wanted me to leave you alone. It didn't make any sense. When I told her to go, she tried to draw her weapon on me—"

"Judy actually went for her tranq gun?" Nick asked, pulling away a little in surprise. Judy hated the idea of even carrying that weapon, though after the fight with the rhino, he was less shocked. "Had you threatened her in any way?"

"I don't know what some dumb bunny thinks is threatening," Silvia sobbed, leaning against him again. "I think I slapped at the gun or…I don't remember. It happened so fast. The next thing I knew, she kicked the table and ran out. I've been hiding here since I called you, in case she looked up where I lived."

"She won't come after you," Nick assured her, but he was beginning to doubt, and that made him feel worse. Nothing about this made sense. "Let me find my phone. I think I left it here when I went to work this morning. I'll get to the bottom of this. One way or another, this ends today."

Silvia nodded and wiped tears away. "I think you had it in your shirt pocket from yesterday."

Nick gave her a quick hug and hurried into the bedroom. Digging through his discarded clothes, he soon found the shirt he had been wearing. Sure enough, the phone was still in his pocket, though he rarely kept it there.

When Nick had gotten the new phone, he had debated putting Judy's number into it. The choice had come down to work necessity. So long as they were assigned as partners, he wanted to ensure he could let her know if his schedule changed. Given his present frame of mind, he doubted that he would have remembered her digits if he had not already saved them.

Nick did not hesitate to dial, pacing around his bedroom as the phone rang. This was going to get ugly, and he had no idea what to expect. Either Judy would be all tears over a mistake or he was going to hear how Silvia was somehow threatening her. Neither was going to go over well with him, but he wanted to know Judy's side. He needed that to feel justified in how angry he already was or at least understand what was happening.

The phone finally picked up, and before Nick could say anything, Judy's voice came across clearly angry. "Okay, you listen to me. Whatever game you're playing, if you make me come after you—"

Nick stared in disbelief at the phone. Judy was actually threatening him when he was calling to give her a chance to excuse her behavior. He had no idea what had come over her, but this was too much. This was not the Judy he had debated pledging his love for a week before.

"I thought she was lying," Nick replied, collapsing onto the edge of his bed. "Thank you for confirming it. I'll meet you in front of your apartment in one hour. You can have my badge. Bogo would rather keep you of the two of us, anyway."

Nick did not wait for Judy to answer before hanging up and turning off his phone. Putting his face in his one good paw, he stifled his sobs, knowing any emotion other than anger would lead to more issues with Silvia. He had to be strong and face Judy over this. Whatever was happening to the bunny was starting to impact Nick's life, and that was something he could not allow. Deep down, he wished he could wake up and make the last few weeks vanish.

Taking a deep breath, Nick slid his phone into his pocket and got back up. He smoothed his police uniform, which he still had on after rushing home to Silvia. This could well be the last time he ever wore it.

"Keep ice on that," Nick told Silvia as he came back into the front room, packing up his apartment keys and all ZPD-issued equipment. "I'll go get to the bottom of this."

Silvia sat up straight, staring at him with what he could only describe as fear. "Nick, that's not safe. She's crazy!"

"I can deal with Judy. You take care of yourself. I'll be back in an hour. If she doesn't see reason, I'll cut off contact with her permanently."

Despite ongoing arguments from Silvia, Nick rushed from the apartment before he could change his mind. There was only one way to finish things, and that meant keeping his determination. He needed to cling to his outrage and anger at what Judy had done if he had any hope of standing up to her, especially if she turned her sad eyes on him. He dearly hoped for a shouting match. That, he might be able to handle emotionally. Those violet eyes would make him question his decisions if they even hinted at sadness. If she even hinted at the time they had sat in the fields talking in Bunnyburrow, Nick was certain he would fold.

Nick made his way across Savannah Central on paw, deciding he was better off taking the half hour to stew on his options, rather than take the subway the mile or so to Judy's part of town.

Emotions and internal arguments swirled in Nick's head, and he found himself snarling, flicking his tail, and muttering as he walked, likely causing the mammals he passed to think he was crazy. He did not care. His best friend had tried to hurt his girlfriend. This was beyond unforgivable.

 _She made her choices_ , he told himself, rubbing his cast as a reminder of how things had ended between them. _I tried to make it work. She chose Jack. She has no right going after Silvia. Even if I had upset Judy, her quarrel is with me, not her. Why would she put me in this situation after all we've been through? She's not crazy. She's…what is she thinking that she would attack Silvia? There has to be some reason. Even if Judy and I had been…if I cheated on her, she would have come after me. Attacking Silvia out of anger at me sounds more like…actually, it sounds more like Silvia than Judy. Something here doesn't make sense. Someone's trying to hustle me._

Nick stopped walking as that thought crossed his mind. Silvia was unpredictable and her emotions knew few limits, which he had already learned when they had fooled around in bed. For all his anger at Judy for attacking her, it was Silvia he trusted less, even now. That did not bode well for the future and was why he had insisted on taking things far slower than Silvia had wanted.

 _We'll work it out. More emotional talks_ , Nick assured himself, shaking his head as he set off again. _At least there's something to work on there. Judy didn't even give me a way to work through things. Silvia just needs to understand me._

Finally Nick came around the last corner and looked down the road toward Judy's place. Parked across the street, he could see the armored van they had been using for stakeouts and found himself wondering how big of a fight Judy was preparing for if she had that instead of a cruiser. Possibly she had already been using it and took it in a hurry to meet him, but it did strike him as odd.

Looking both ways up the street, Nick ran across to the far side and approached cautiously as he neared the van. Judy had parked it at the end of an alley, where it would be out of the way of traffic, as there were no meters on this particular street. Having the van fully in shadows gave it an even more ominous feel that slowed Nick's stride further.

Nick took a deep breath. This was it. He was about to tell Judy that he was quitting and never wanted to see her again unless she came up with a great story on the spot. Nothing in his life had felt quite so final, even when he had found Jack in her apartment or when his own father had died. This was the end of his truest friendship that did not involve hustling and the end of his first legitimate career.

He had come full-circle in such a short period of time. For years he had been convinced the prejudices of other animals meant there was no point in trying to make anyone trust him. No one would ever believe in a fox. Now he was casting aside the last vestige of that trust and going back to his old life. Finnick would be so proud.

"Judy!" Nick bellowed, walking around the van when he saw the driver's seat was empty. He headed for the rear of the vehicle. "Where are you?"

From the alley-end of the van, Nick heard Judy call back. "I'm here. I didn't want this out on the street."

Marching with as much anger as he could muster, Nick came around the back of the van and found Judy sitting in the open rear doors of the vehicle, her hind paws hanging off the bumper and her front ones clenched together tightly. As he came into view, her eyes went to the pavement in front of him and her ears sank flat.

"I want an explanation," Nick growled, walking up to her, but Judy would not look up. That was both infuriating and a relief to not have to fight his own feelings reflected in those eyes. "You might have broken her nose…"

Judy shifted, and Nick caught a whiff of copper. Looking her over, he quickly spotted the dried blood covering her right paw and the deep punctures in her arm guard. Visually searching her over, he saw scuffs in her uniform that hinted at a fight, as well as bits of glass embedded in the padding and sparkling in various spots around her fur.

"I actually hope I did," Judy said softly. "I'm sorry that it hurts you, Nick. I never wanted to hurt you. I do need to arrest her, though."

Nick felt his anger slipping away into confusion. "What? Why? You kicked her…"

"I did," Judy replied, pulling her wounded arm into her lap. "It was the only way I could get away. She ambushed me. I know you don't believe me."

"Why should I? You've been acting weird ever since we got back from Bunnyburrow, and this may be the strangest thing you've ever expected me to accept. You want me to believe that my girlfriend hunted you down and you had to protect yourself?"

"I don't care what you believe anymore, Nick. It's the truth. Look at my arm. You know the truth when you see it. Take your time if you need to. I'm not going anywhere until you are ready. Yell if you have to. I'm not walking away this time."

Nick's gaze drifted back to the puncture wounds on Judy's arm guard. They were the right size for fox claws. "You got attacked," he said, shaking his head. "I don't believe that she attacked without reason. I'll believe that she fought back."

"Nick!" Judy snapped, finally looking up at him. Instead of anger, Nick saw unmistakable sadness in those violet eyes, melting his resolve instantly. Dammit. Now he was in trouble. "She claimed she owned you. She wanted me gone because we had a past. This is her way of making sure you have no one else in your life. That's not right and it's not good for you. You can make your own choices, but she tried to kill me today. I want to let you two be happy, but I can't ignore this. I've got a car already going to your apartment to arrest her."

Nick's shoulders sank, as did his ears and tail. He was having a very hard time convincing himself that Judy was lying.

"Do you have some proof?" he finally asked, no longer able to look her in the eyes.

Judy shook her head. "Probably not. She texted me from your phone and by the time I got there…"

Nick did not hesitate, pulling out his phone and searching his message history. At first glance there were no messages to or from Judy, but Nick knew better than to trust the default display. He went to his deleted messages and found several both to and from her. She was not lying. Silvia had deceived him. He could not be certain any portion of her story was truth.

"She set this all up," Nick mumbled in disbelief, turning off the phone. "I'm so sorry, Judy. I don't know what she was thinking. I can't possibly apologize enough. I'll figure out what's going on."

A loud crunch down the alley behind Nick made his ears shoot up. Something large was running their way.

In front of him, Judy also sat up sharply, leaning to look past him. Her eyes widening, she blurted out, "Nick! Get in the van!"

Diving forward across Judy, Nick barely managed to get inside before Judy yanked the doors shut. They had not even clicked when sounds of gunfire began outside, as well as the deafening pings of the bullets striking the doors. The whole van shook with the impacts, before the gunfire stopped, leaving the van silent aside from their panting as Judy clutched the door handle, her eyes wide with panic.

"Antonne," she finally whispered, clicking the lock on the door. "He was hiding behind a dumpster, like he was expecting us."

Nick dove for the front of the van, reaching the driver's window at the same time as the rhino did. Slamming his palm pad down on the lock, he beat Antonne by less than a second. Before Antonne could get any new ideas, Nick rolled to the other side and locked that door too. They were trapped, but trapped inside an armored van. To Nick's surprise, Antonne punched the driver's door, and it sounded as though he had smashed the handle.

At the back of the van, Judy was already on her radio.

"Suspect Antonne Kenyin has opened fire on ZPD officers," she told dispatch or Clawhauser, her voice nearly calm as she lay back against the wall of the van. "We are safe for the moment. Where is the second car I requested?"

To Nick's surprise, Bogo's voice came in reply. "Do you have Wilde with you?"

"I do."

"Keep him there," Bogo answered firmly. "Our second vehicle is taking fire, but it appears they're stalling us. Someone wants you two. If the van is in any shape to drive, get out of there. We will have reinf—"

The rest of Bogo's response was lost to Nick as the entire van rolled onto its side with a crash. He fell hard against the wall, with Judy tumbling to rest alongside him.

"No driving for us," Judy told Bogo. "We'll hold position. Please hurry."

Nick stared at the ceiling—or rather, the driver's side wall—and tried to sort out what was happening. "Either she sent them or…"

"Stop that right now, Nick," Judy snapped, scrambling to her hind paws. She fumbled for her tranquillizer gun with only one usable paw that was on the wrong side for her holster. "We'll figure it out after. Right now, we need to be ready."

"Ready for what?" Nick asked, throwing his paws up in dismay. "We're in an armored van!"

A crash from the back doors slid the van several feet and dropped Judy to her knees.

"Ready for that. We're dealing with a rhino, Nick. This van won't hold together forever. It's meant to stop a few stray bullets, not a two-thousand-pound battering ram."

Another deafening bang made Nick's ears ring, and when he looked toward the doors, he saw they were bent partway into the van. Reaching behind him, he went to grab his own handgun, only to remember that he had been relieved of it when placed on desk duty.

"Do you have your service pistol?" Nick asked, wincing as another booming creak from the back of the van slid them farther into the street. He could see some sunlight through cracks in the doors. "We're both down a paw, but with two, we can probably bring him down."

"Nope," Judy said, shaking her head. Her ears flattened to the back of her head as she raised the tranquillizer pistol in her left paw toward the doors and steadied herself by taking one knee. Nick could see her arm shake slightly as she aimed her weapon. "I have three darts and nothing else. You have any sneaky ideas?"

Nick huffed at that. "Kind of hard to be sneaky from inside a locked van. Move to the front of the van. We might be able to use the seats for cover to get all three shots off before he's on us."

Judy looked over her shoulder at the seats, but shook her head and went back to watching the back of the van. "We're trapped there, and those won't stop him for a second. Out here, we can try to run. One of us should be able to get past him."

Another bang against the back of the van tore the door partway open, and Nick saw Antonne's horn push into the van. He pulled away a moment later, leaving a hole large enough that Judy could have easily gotten out and Nick could probably manage it with effort.

"He can probably pull the door open now," Judy whispered, closing one eye to aim. "Be ready."

Nick rolled onto all four paws, bracing himself for them both to run. With luck the darts would at least stagger Antonne long enough that they could get away from him. The moment the rhino yanked the door open, Nick had to be ready to move. There would be no second chance.

A few seconds passed, with both Nick and Judy holding their position and barely breathing. Just when Nick was starting to wonder if Antonne had fled, the barrel of a handgun slid through the opening in the doors.

"Carrots!" Nick shouted, diving sideways to tackle Judy as he heard gunfire echoing through the van and what smelled like blood sprayed him. The ringing of the shots became a roar as his sensitive ears failed to adjust to the booms, but Nick was unconcerned about his hearing. Instead he dragged Judy to the front seat, flattening out over her on the window of the passenger side to minimize the chance they would be hit.

Three shots, and Nick felt glass and debris from the seats pelted him. The fourth rang out, and something grazed his back. Frantic to ensure Judy's protection, Nick slid to her side, putting himself squarely between her and the shooter. The moment he settled into that position, another shot cracked through the van, and he felt a burning impact against his back, below his right shoulder. Gasping, Nick tried to focus, to see if Judy had managed to fire back, but the world spun and lurched.

Gagging as his mouth filled with blood, Nick fell atop Judy, his ears still ringing.

The last thought that passed through his mind as he passed out was, _Judy, please forgive me._


	25. Chapter 6-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 6.3**

 **June 30** **th** **, Thursday Morning – Meadowlands Health**

Judy woke slowly, the whole world feeling as though it were filled with pain and blinding light. She squeezed her eyes shut again, trying to keep from having to deal with any of it. All she wanted was to go back to the quiet dark that had existed moments earlier. It did not seem like a lot to ask for.

The pain grew with each second, and soon Judy could not keep herself from screaming. She tried to sit up, but restraints kept her down. Panicking, she flailed briefly, gasping for breath and trying to sort out what was happening.

"Jude, Jude," repeated a familiar voice as soft paws held her arm and closed over her fingers. "Relax, hon. We're here. Jack called us when you didn't come home. You're safe."

Judy felt her panic diminish, but it would not entirely vanish. She drifted back into unconsciousness for a time, only to wake again to the pain and light. Groaning, she struggled to keep still this time. After what felt like an eternity, she began to make out shapes around her, including two faces looking down at her and a bright florescent light overhead that made her eyes ache.

"She's waking up again," a female voice announced, and the second head perked up, as though they had been asleep. "Can you hear us this time, hon?"

Judy nodded weakly, her throat so dry and painful that she really did not want to speak much. "Yeah. Where am I?"

A tight squeeze on her left paw helped reassure Judy that she was safe. "You're at the hospital, Jude. Everything's okay now."

Smiling, Judy smiled and drifted a little closer to unconsciousness again. "Hi, Mom. Dad."

"Heya," her father whispered, kissing her forehead. "You remember anything?"

Judy blinked slowly, the fog of sleeping receding gradually. "Someone was shooting at us. I hit my head when I went down. I…where's Nick? Where are we?"

The drowsiness finally faded as Judy grasped at memories. Sitting up as best she could, Judy found she had been lightly restrained to the bed she lay in, likely to keep her from thrashing in her sleep. The straps were easy enough for her to reach, so she knew there was no intention that she be truly bound, so she quickly unfastened them.

Looking down across the bed, Judy could see nothing wrong with her, aside from several small bandages on her right wrist where Silvia had cut her. She slid one paw down, then gasped as she hit a large bandage across her side, below her ribs. Pain radiated from that bandage all across her right side. That appeared to be her only serious injury, which was relatively minor compared to things that could have happened from what she remembered. She had gotten off easy.

"You're at the Meadowlands hospital. The rhino that attacked you died at the scene when your backup arrived. Nick…he's, um," Judy's father stammered, looking across the bed to her mother. "How would you put it, Bon Bon?"

"Still unconscious," her mother finished, squeezing Judy's paw. "You've been out for days and he lost a lot more blood than you did, plus he had to go through a small surgery. They say he'll be fine, though. No major injuries, once they removed some shrapnel. They don't know when he will wake up."

That set Judy back into a mild panic. Her ears shooting up, she began unstrapping the restraints, even as her parents told her to stop. Once she was free, she checked over her hospital gown to be sure there were no other injuries that might surprise her or wires attached to her before turning to hang her hind paws off the bed.

"Crutches," she gasped, trying to ignore the throbbing in her side or the slight sensation of blood oozing. When no one moved, Judy made a grabby motion toward a set of crutches across the room from her and repeated, "Crutches!"

Her father finally got up and fetched the crutches. Reluctantly he put them in her paws.

"Honey," he said, wringing his paws as Judy slowly eased one hind paw onto the cold floor and slid a crutch under her left arm. "They said you need to stay down for a few days. Maybe a week. You lost a lot of blood before they got to you."

"What room is he in?" Judy asked, ignoring her father. She got onto both paws and nearly collapsed, her head spinning as blood began to pound into it and caused her side to ache horribly.

Judy's mother hurried around the bed, pulling Stu out of her way. "Next door on the left. They wanted you two close together so that they could better watch for any other attempts on you both."

 _Attempts_ , Judy repeated in her head, realizing the meaning instantly. _Attempts on our lives. This was targeted. Someone is willing to track down and kill two specific officers._

Wincing and struggling to stay upright, Judy put her weight on the left crutch so she could ease off her right side. She rocked dangerously, her body refusing to cooperate for several seconds. Finally sheer stubbornness won out and she managed to slide her right paw across the floor. Step by step, she gingerly made her way to the open door of the room and out into the hallway.

The hospital was nearly empty around her as Judy stepped out of the room. The only mammals in sight were two officers she did not know, who stood at the ready between her door and the next. At her approach the smaller of the two—a male badger—gave her a nervous stare and then inched out of her way. The other officer—a female lion—scowled more openly in a way that Judy would have expected from her mother, rather than a stranger. Still, neither of them were any concern to Judy.

"I'm making your lives easier," Judy said, her voice still hoarse and faint. She hobbled a few more steps until she was facing the door to Nick's room. "Only one room to watch."

Opening the door, Judy saw Nick lay on a bed similar to her own, his muzzle covered with a respirator. Thick bandages over his chest hinted at injuries similar to hers, though they were closer to the center of his right side and Judy knew that meant his lung had likely been punctured or close to it. Smaller bandages covered either grazes or glass cuts on his neck and cheek. He was lucky to still be breathing after the chest wound, let alone everything else.

Judy limped over to the chair nearest the bed, slowly realizing she was the only one in the room. Easing herself down, she tried to steady her breathing. Not knowing how long she had been unconscious, Judy wondered if perhaps his visitors had stepped out.

"Officers," she called over her shoulder and waited until the lioness appeared in the doorway. "Was his mother notified?"

The lioness shook her head. "No family on file. The only contact we had was someone named Finnick who he had listed as a brother. He hasn't shown up yet, though we've called a few times."

Judy frowned deeply, wondering why Nick would not have put his mother on file as a contact, but fully understanding why Finnick would not take a call from the ZPD. Searching the room without getting up, Judy spotted a bag of his belongings on the table beside the bed. She pulled that onto her lap and sorted through the contents until she found his phone. Thankfully, someone had turned it off and it had not been damaged in the attack.

Turning on the phone, Judy waited for it to finish loading, watching Nick's chest rise and fall slowly. Each beep from the machines made her flinch a little, wondering if he would ever wake up. In only two weeks, he had nearly broken his paw, had his back and neck torn up, lost far too much blood, and now been shot in the chest. It was beyond hope that he would come out of this unscathed. If nothing else, he was going to be fearful of what was coming next.

The phone finally finished loading, and Judy went straight to the contacts. She found only four: Finnick, Judy, Silvia, and Nick's mother. That rather surprised her. She had always assumed he had a huge list of people he spoke with regularly.

Dialing, Judy put the phone to her ear and waited as it rang.

"Hello?" came an older female voice after two rings. "Nicholas?"

Judy squeezed her eyes shut. She needed to be strong for this. "No, Missus Wilde. This is his partner, Judy. Nick was involved in a shooting recently and—"

"He what? Where is he? Was he the one injured?"

"Yes," Judy forced herself to say, hearing the catch in the breath of Nick's mother.

A long pause left Judy wondering whether to say more, but Nick's mother finally spoke up again. "Are you all right, Judy?"

"Mostly," she answered, smiling sadly. It felt strange hearing the motherly concern of someone she had never met aimed at her. "Nick saved my life."

Another long pause. "Is my son alive?"

"Yes. He's alive but unconscious," Judy answered quickly, not wanting to put his mother through more than needed. "We're at Meadowland Health. Please come, if you can."

"I will be there shortly" came the strained reply, just before the line clicked out.

Sighing, Judy set aside the phone and returned her attention to Nick. She knew she was not lying in what she had told his mother. The last thing Judy remembered was Nick pulling her to safety after the rhino opened fire, his first shot hitting her in the side. Nick had shielded her, wrapping his body over her.

"You're still too good to me," Judy said, taking Nick's right paw in hers. "Even after I pushed you away, you still do everything right. It's not fair."

Leaning forward, Judy brushed Nick's fingers across her cheek, the way he had back in the burrow. It was not the same without him smiling down at her, no matter how much she tried to make herself believe the touch was real. Wiping her tears against the sleeve of her gown, Judy pulled Nick's arm to her chest and clung as tightly as she dared.

Sniffling despite her efforts to remain calm, Judy let her ears drape over Nick's arm as she whispered, "Don't you leave me. Dammit, Nick, I don't care if you end up with Silvia or someone else, just so long as they aren't trying to kill you. I want you in my life, not all to myself. I'll give up anything to have you wake up and make everything the way it was. Be a jerk to me, that's fine. Just don't push me out of your life."

Judy pulled Nick's paw back to her face and rested the bridge of her muzzle against the back of it. A short time later, she heard movement behind her. She did not care enough to look up, thinking it might have been one of the officers at the door.

"His mother is on her way," Judy told whoever was back there, keeping her face against Nick's paw.

"Hon," her father said and Judy heard him padding over to her, though he stopped right behind her. "You need to be in bed."

Judy shook her head slowly, keeping Nick's fingers against her forehead. "Even when he was mad at me, he saved my life. I'm staying here until someone takes my place. I won't leave him alone. If he wakes up…I'll go. Given the conversation we'd been having, he won't want me here then."

Sliding up a second chair, Stu eased himself down alongside Judy, and she watched him nervously, though her attention stayed on Nick. He frowned when he looked at Nick, but initially he said nothing. Instead he waited with her, the minutes passing slowly with the sound of the machines that were monitoring Nick.

"You love him?" her father finally asked, and for once he did not sound as though he was judging her.

Judy smiled into Nick's paw. "Doesn't matter if I do or don't, Dad. He was coming to tell me that he never wanted to see me again. He was quitting the force."

"It always matters, Jude. You never were one to settle. I know you won't now. Make sure he knows how you feel. You can't lose a friend like him. Friends are too important for all that."

"Dad," she said, feeling too tired to put up a proper fight. "He has someone else. I think she's crazy, but he likes her…"

The sound of the officers outside telling someone to leave caught Judy's attention. Turning her ears, she heard another smaller mammal out in the hall arguing with the officers about whether she was allowed inside.

"Go have them let her in," Judy told her father. "That's Nick's mother."

Before her father could get up, Judy heard her mother talking to the officers. After a moment, they allowed the new visitors—Judy realized she could hear two sets of paws on the tile floor—into the room.

"Oh, Nicky," came the same voice Judy had heard on the phone. An older vixen hurried to the side of the bed, despite a cane that she appeared not to need too badly.

Judy quickly put Nick's arm back onto the bed and lowered her eyes. "I'll go and let you be with him." Shifting to slide off the chair toward her crutches, Judy found herself looking at Finnick, his arms crossed over his chest as he stood alongside the bed.

"Damn fool, that boy," muttered the small fox, shaking his head as he glanced up at Judy.

"He shouldn't have risked himself," she agreed quickly, again averting her eyes.

"Nah," Finnick replied quickly. "The fool part was joining the cops. Saving you is the least I expect from him. He's gettin' sloppy. Looks like you still got hit."

Judy laughed weakly, putting a paw to her side and feeling the blood that had soaked through her bandages. Looking at her father, she found he was quietly talking with Nick's mother, though he stopped when Judy looked up. To her surprise it was Nick's mother that came to meet her as she got to her paws.

"Where are you going, bunny?" she asked, cocking her head. "Can I help you back to your bed?"

Judy shook her head and leaned heavily on her crutch. "I don't want to be here when he wakes up. I'll leave you to watch him now. Please take care of him."

Nick's mother frowned deeply. "Judy, child, please walk with me a moment, if you're going to insist on getting up."

Judy led the way out of the room, carefully picking each step as she made her way into the hall. By the time they were past the officers, Judy's whole side felt as though it were on fire. Despite the pain, she turned toward Nick's mother, ready to face whatever scolding might come from allowing her son to be shot.

For a long moment, Nick's mother appeared lost in thought, tapping her chin as she stared at the floor. Her tail swished slowly over the tiles, until it stopped abruptly and she looked up to Judy's face. "Have you and my Nick had a long talk?" she finally asked Judy, her ears up and a little forward. "I know what I saw in there, and I'm hoping that means you have."

"I'm sorry," Judy answered quickly, feeling both her ears and tail sink lower. "I shouldn't have been so—no, we haven't talked much. I did something that upset him and…well…since then…"

Nick's mother scowled. "Two weeks ago, my Nick swore he would come talk to you. Am I to understand he didn't?"

Judy was confused and shrugged. "He did…Sunday? When he came in, he got angry and left. Since then he won't talk to me. I'm guessing he was going to talk to me about…what I did…the way I…I guess how things ended badly in Bunnyburrow."

"Ended badly?" Nick's mother asked in reply, ears popping straight up. "You two may be hopeless. Child, you need to talk to Nick when he wakes up, no matter how painful it might be. He's clever, but he's not very good at speaking his mind when it comes to feelings. Please talk to him. With him in a hospital bed, he's not going anywhere, so this may be your one chance to get past all his acts. Your…friendship…means more to him than I think you understand."

"Thank you," Judy said softly, smiling up at Nick's mother. "It may have to wait, though. He isn't awake yet and my parents wouldn't understand."

Nick's mother turned to look at Stu and Bonnie, still in Nick's room near Finnick. "Let me deal with them. You go get some rest. I'll have Finnick get you when Nick wakes."

As Nick's mother went into the room, Judy limped back into her own. Slowly she made her way to her bed and crawled back onto it. Clenching her jaw to keep from screaming as she felt the tug of stitches in her side straining, Judy finally managed to get both hind paws onto the bed and slide them under the covers.

She panted for a while, trying to slow the throbbing through her body, until at last she realized she was not alone. Looking over, she found Finnick was standing alongside her bed. "What do you want?" Judy demanded, scowling at him.

"I guess that answers that question," Finnick muttered, crossing his arms. "Nick's mom wanted me to tell you that I was the one who hooked him up with Silvia. She…I wanted to apologize. Pretty sure Mom was gonna spank me if I didn't. She would, too."

"You don't owe me anything, Finnick. You owe Nick an apology. That vixen is insane. She lied to both of us and tried to tear off my arm."

Finnick chuckled and shook his head slightly. "Damn. That just figures. Nick can't catch a break."

"You didn't know her before you set them up?"

"Nah," Finnick admitted. "I wanted to give Nick a choice if things went bad with you."

"Gee, thanks," Judy mumbled, turning her attention to the ceiling. "Please leave."

Judy kept her eyes on the paneled ceiling until Finnick left the room. Once he was gone, she relaxed a little, closing her eyes to rest. She had meant to stay awake and wait for her parents' return, but soon drifted back to sleep.


	26. Chapter 6-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 6.4 – Understanding**

 **July 1** **st** **, Friday Morning – Meadowlands Health**

Sometime later, Judy snapped awake, her mind immediately racing to put everything back together. This time it only took a few seconds and she remembered where she was and what had happened to her and Nick. Looking around, she found it was night outside and her mother sat in the chair alongside the bed, sleeping quietly.

Soft whispering drew Judy's attention to the hall outside the room. There, she could see Nick's mother and her father sitting in chairs across from the two rooms, talking to each other. The conversation was too quiet for her to hear at that distance, but they were both smiling and looked as though they had been friends for years. It warmed her heart, given how her father had reacted to Nick in the burrow.

"Oh, hon," Judy's mother remarked, sitting up sharply. "When'd you wake up?"

"Just now," she replied, smiling. "I miss much?"

Reaching over, Bonnie patted Judy's arm. "A little. Nick's been awake on and off, though not for very long and I'm not certain he remembers much yet."

"What're Dad and his mother talking about?"

Bonnie glanced over her shoulder. "Not sure, hon. I think at this point, just sharing embarrassing stories about the things their kids did when younger. Neither was in any shape to sit around and wait for you two to wake up. They needed some distracting. They both worry too much."

Judy watched her father and Nick's mother happily. At least some members of the families seemed to be getting along.

"Judy, honey," her mother added after a short pause. "Aren't you going to go to him?"

"Nope. Betting he doesn't want me there."

Bonnie's face crinkled a little and her ears tilted back. "Judy, he's asked for you every time he woke up. I think you're a little confused, hon."

"He…asked?" Judy could not believe what she was hearing and believed it even less when her mother nodded vigorously. "Why didn't you wake me?"

"Oh, I tried. You were really stubborn about staying asleep. It got a little weird when you called me Nick and asked me to turn off the alarm, but I figured that was the medicine talking."

Judy bit her lip and gave a halfhearted laugh that she hoped her mother might accept.

Lying where she was for a little longer, Judy finally looked back to her mother. "Do you think he'll mind if I go in there?"

"Not at all, hon," Bonnie answered, smiling. "It's almost dawn, so he'll probably not wake for a little longer. I doubt he'll mind if you're there when he does, though."

Judy dearly hoped her mother was right. Easing herself to the edge of the bed, she took the crutch that was within reach and used it to slowly slide down off the mattress until her toes came down on the cold floor. As before, it took a minute before her balance was stable enough to walk, but soon she was able to begin the painful trip between rooms.

As she passed through the hallway, Judy got reassuring smiles from both her father and Nick's mother, but neither said anything to her. Once she had passed them, they resumed their conversation, and Judy was able to hear that her mother had been right—they were discussing embarrassing stories about their children. Judy tried hard to ignore the fact that her father was rambling about the time she had run around the burrow naked after a bath when she was just two years old.

Judy made it into Nick's room and found he had not moved much from the last time she had been in there. The respirator had been removed and he appeared to be breathing normally on his own, though the rest of the monitors were still strapped to his chest. Blood had stained the bandages, giving her an idea of how large the wound had been. If she could ignore the bloody bandages, he appeared to be resting peacefully, even drooling a little at the corners of his muzzle.

She stood at the door for what felt like a long time, watching Nick sleep. Deep down, she wanted to go to him, to be with him while he recovered, but that nagging doubt about where she stood with him resurfaced and she could not bring herself to put one paw in front of the other and get any closer. Finally Judy told herself she was being stupid and turned to go back to her room.

"Where you going, Fluff?"

Judy froze at the door with her back to Nick, her ears perking at the sound of his voice. "How long have you been awake?" she asked over her shoulder.

"Long enough to know you're worried," Nick answered airily, chuckling weakly. "That and long enough to watch that fuzzy little tail waggle out of my room. You do know that hospital gown doesn't cover your backside all that well, right? You mind walking out and back a few more times? I need some cheering up here."

Judy laughed in spite of herself and despite the pain in her side. Turning back to Nick, she made her way to the chair and sat slowly at his side.

"You're doing well for someone with a hole in his chest," she said, setting her crutch against the wall nearby.

"Am I?" Nick wheezed a little, looking down at his own chest. "So I am. Not sure what I'm pumped full of, but I barely feel it. Thought I was just short of breath."

"Trust me when I say you shouldn't get up yet, no matter how you're feeling."

Nick smiled and relaxed back onto his pillow. It seemed to take all his strength just to stay awake and talk intermittently. The brief periods his eyes were open, she could tell he was barely able to see.

Judy gave him several minutes before she glanced back toward the hallway. Both her father and Nick's mother were watching her.

"I suppose now's as good a time as any," Judy said, slumping back in her chair. "Your mother said you were going to talk to me the night you stormed off?"

Nick smirked and held up his left paw with its bandaging. "I'd say that didn't go as planned, Carrots."

"What happened? What did you want to talk to me about?"

Nick turned his head a little so he could look down at her. "You really don't know?"

"Not a clue. You came by and were a little weird about things. I thought at one point you were going to throw those flowers at me. Next I knew, you were angry and left. It's never been the same since. When I saw the flowers, I'd hoped maybe you'd forgiven me for Bunnyburrow and…you know. Being a bit eager and pushy. I just didn't know how to approach you since then."

Nick's broad smile was a welcome relief. "Nothing to forgive. I was scared. I should've been clearer about why I was saying no. I was terrified of hurting you and not just emotionally. You said you didn't want to be tied down, so I was trying to work with that."

"I don't, if it means giving up my dreams," she confessed. Nothing about this was going the way she had expected. "I…I don't think I need to give up anything with you. That's why I wasn't afraid anymore."

"Then why'd you change your mind?"

Judy froze at that question, feeling her nose twitching nervously. "You changed, Nick, not me. I came back into town hoping to patch up our friendship if you had gotten scared off by what happened. Instead, you ran off and hooked up with Silvia."

"Rebound," Nick admitted, frowning and looking away from her. "Not one of my better choices in life. What was I supposed to do when I found out you'd gotten together with someone else after I left the burrow? I wasn't ready for that and I acted a little childishly. Maybe a lot childishly. It was that or drinking myself unconscious for a week. That might've been smarter, actually."

Judy's ears shot up. She wanted to grab Nick, to make him look at her and explain, but with them both on the verge of bleeding she knew that was not an ideal choice. "I didn't hook up with anyone, Nick. You're the only one I've even considered being with in a very long time."

Slowly Nick turned back to her. "What about Jack? Am I not supposed to know you've got another bunny living with you? Did you forget I saw you two in your pajamas on the floor together? Only one bed in the place."

The confusion gradually faded away, and Judy could not help herself. She started laughing. Even when Nick stared at her as though she were insane, she kept laughing until she knew her side was bleeding. Still, it was difficult to stop the hysterical giggling.

"Jack?" she demanded between chortles. "Jack Hopps? He's my brother, you dumb fox. He moved here and needed a place to stay until he gets a job. He's sleeping on the floor. Please tell me you didn't do all this because you didn't bother to ask me one simple question. If I'd realized you didn't remember me mentioning him in the burrow, I'd have spelled it out for you. I swear I mentioned him when we were out in the fields. Why didn't you ask?"

Nick groaned and closed his eyes. "I may be the dumbest fox ever. I thought he was your boyfriend."

"Oh, Nick," she chided, shaking her head. "We've been at odds over that? I thought it was because you were mad over what I did in the burrow. I was trying to give you space."

"No, I was definitely not mad about what happened, Fluff. I'd been dwelling on that a bit more than is fair to you. Space was about the worst thing for my paranoia. The flowers were supposed to be a peace offering so we could sit down and figure out whether there was any chance of…of us."

Judy reached out and took Nick's paw in hers. He squeezed back and that gentle touch let her know things had a chance of returning to normal.

"Is there?" he finally asked, those green eyes watching Judy more intently than she had been ready for. "At least a chance?"

"For us? Nick…you have Silvia, for better or worse. I'm not going to just turn around and pretend none of this happened. It did. Ignoring it isn't fair to her and probably not even fair to you. Maybe someday, but not right now. We missed that chance. You need to figure out where you are with her first. After that, I'm willing to talk about it. Settle things there and we'll see."

"I'd have to say that's on the rocks. Having her try to maul my best friend doesn't usually bode well for a relationship."

"She was being territorial," Judy noted, frowning at Nick. "I get it, even if I still think she's crazy. That's a talk you two need to have. I'm not getting into that."

Nick nodded and tightened his grip on Judy's paw as he closed his eyes. "Promise me you'll at least stay with me. That you'll be here when I wake up. This month's been awful. I don't want to wake up alone."

"Do you want me to call Silvia, to let her know you're here?"

Nick took a deep breath and almost began coughing. Shaking his head, he replied, "No. Can I be honest, Carrots?"

"It kind of creeps me out when you are honest, but you can always be honest with me if you want."

"She scares me," he said, smiling sheepishly. "Will you protect me?"

Judy laughed and clasped Nick's paw in both of hers. "Yes, I will protect you, but you need to promise you'll talk to her about how you really feel, even if you have to hide behind me while doing it."

"Okay," Nick replied, smiling, though his voice sounded sleepy. When he spoke next, Judy was pretty sure he was already mostly asleep. "It's good to have my sly bunny back again."

Once Nick's breathing had steadied and she was certain he was soundly asleep, she replied, "It's good to have my dumb fox back too."

Judy stayed where she was until well after the sun had risen. She did not relax until Nick's mother came in sometime later and put a paw on her shoulder. The gesture was not meant to start a conversation, and Judy realized she merely wanted to reassure Judy. That simple action did exactly that, and she soon fell asleep holding Nick's paw, with his mother's paw petting her ears the way her own mother had when she was a child.


	27. Chapter 7-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 7.1 – Starting Over**

 **July 11** **th** **, Monday – ZPD Precinct One**

Nick gingerly sipped the precinct coffee—one of the most amazing things he had ever had after nearly two weeks in the hospital without any caffeine—which might have been a first since he was about twelve years old. He nursed the cup until his tongue was burned numb, at which point he got a refill and headed into the bullpen. Almost as an afterthought, he shifted the hot cup to his left paw, happy to finally have his soft cast off and some semblance of strength returning.

As Nick walked in, the officers inside the bullpen stood and went quiet. One by one, they saluted him as he limped past.

At the front of the room, Judy stood on their usual chair, though she was wearing a basic uniform rather than the one she wore when patrolling—the same simple outfit Nick wore. Neither of them was cleared for duty outside the precinct for some time yet, but Judy had come back to work the end of the previous week to try to help out how she could. With nothing to keep him from getting bored at his apartment, Nick had decided it was time to return too. Seeing Judy's broad grin and eager bounce made him absolutely certain he made the right choice. She had stopped coming to see him at all hours once she was back to work and he really missed her silly bunny face. Even if he had been ordered to stay in bed, once she was no longer visiting constantly, Nick could not imagine finding any excuse to stay home longer.

"Don't think I've ever had a standing ovation before," Nick muttered, once he managed to slowly climb up beside Judy. His chest ached horribly and he could barely breathe, but that was to be expected. A fractured rib and a small bullet hole through one's chest and edge of one's lung tended to do that. The doctors had been confident that he could return to normal activities without too much risk, but would need to be a little careful for a few more weeks.

"They did the same thing when Wolford came back to retire," Judy whispered, her smile belying the sadness in her tone. She seemed entirely unable to stop smiling at him, even if it felt out of place. "I don't think they believed you would be back."

"I didn't either, if that means anything," Nick admitted, putting a paw to his chest while he caught his breath. "Any news since we talked yesterday?"

"Nothing, aside from some nightmares from that ridiculous movie you had me watch. Any on your end?"

"No," he answered, feeling dread setting in again, as it did each time the topic came up. This was a chapter of his life he wanted closed and soon so that he could move on. "Silvia is still missing. Her bar's dark, and Finnick hasn't been able to find any employees who know why. This wasn't the way I expected things to go…especially since I haven't talked to her since the shooting. I just want answers to what's going on, but I don't know if I'm going to get them."

Finally Chief Bogo approached the podium and bellowed a fairly customary, "Attention! Shut your mouths." After a few seconds, the room quieted, and the chief surveyed those in attendance before continuing. "As of today, we're back to about half our day shift, though we are far below half strength for patrols. Wolford has retired, effective immediately. Fangmeyer will continue on desk duty until such time as his arm fully heals. Grizzoli is on leave, recovering from the trauma of having to kill Antonne Kenyin to save Wilde and Hopps. Hopps is still on desk duty until given clearance by her doctors to return to the field. Wilde is back today, but also on desk duty indefinitely. If he asks to be in the field, everyone has my permission to laugh at him."

Nick's ears and tail sunk a little at the mention, but he understood. There was not a lot he could do without bleeding internally, and even less he could accomplish without gasping for breath. The doctors had already warned him it would be a month before he really had any right to be on unrestricted duty.

"The pressure on our department continues," Bogo was saying, setting aside his glasses. "With decreased patrols, the criminal activity in the various precincts have been getting more brazen. We are tracking multiple reports of groups assaulting prey across Tundratown, operating in a similar manner each time, leading us to believe this is organized and likely tied to the planned attacks on our officers. The assumption until we find evidence otherwise is that one group is attempting to destabilize the city and take control over the underworld dealings. There are no leads yet on who or what this group might be."

Turning to Nick and Judy, Bogo continued. "You two may be on desk duty, but I believe you can manage to spend some time questioning some sources in the field without breaking too many regulations. I want you both to talk with Mister Big and report any new information you might find. Clawhauser will drive you. We are currently working on a warrant to investigate the Slo Does Bar, which Pennington will take lead on, though we will keep you informed due to Wilde's…involvement in that portion of the case. You two, head out."

Nick nodded, feeling a little sick to his stomach. He had been the one to push for the search of the bar after Silvia went missing, though he still felt as though he were invading her privacy for personal reasons. He desperately wanted to talk to her, to set the record straight and properly end things, but at this point, she had been missing for a week or more. There was no reason not to explore every lead, and he had said as much to Bogo during a phone call two days prior.

Sliding down off the chair, Nick had to steady himself and catch his breath again. It took terribly little to wind him, and the walk from the subway to the precinct had almost been enough to convince him that he needed a few more days bed rest. Still, with Judy back on the job, he was not going to sit out.

"Still hurting?" Judy asked, climbing down alongside him. "I know I am, and you were far worse off."

Nick nodded and leaned on the leg of the chair. "I think just riding in a car is going to push my limits. They did say getting up and moving around more would speed recovery, but I'm not convinced."

Judy touched his arm, and Nick realized that such a simple thing had been something he had missed over the last few weeks. During his stay in the hospital, she had started shying away again even after their talk as the fear of losing one another had faded and embarrassment over their behavior in public returned. Before their fight…well, she definitely was avoiding him then, and he could not blame her. He had been the worst friend imaginable. The gentle touch was enough to derail every possible thought he had.

"Don't push too hard," she warned him, watching him with those worried eyes, her ears laid back. On some level, Nick wished he could spend the day recovering without her leaving him. The concern in her eyes was enough to make him willing to put up with bed rest, but only if she was sticking around. "Take extra time if you need to."

"I can't do that, Fluff. Someone tried to kill half our department. The longer any of us are in a bed, the more likely they're going to succeed. Besides, Silvia's still missing, and I really want to tell her that it isn't working out while I still have the gunshot wound to discourage her from hurting me more."

Judy's scowl let him know that Silvia was still a bit of sore subject. Before Judy had checked out of the hospital, they had spent several nights talking extensively. She made it quite clear that while she had no intention of getting involved in that squabble, she had very strong feelings about what Silvia had done to Nick and about her attempts to turn them on each other. Strangely, at least to Nick, Judy was more accepting of Silvia's attack on her than she was of Silvia's manipulating Nick. When Judy had finally left the hospital, she had kissed his cheek and the pain of her departure had bothered Nick more than he cared to admit even to himself.

The lengthy discussions to sort out what had actually happened had settled matters for Nick. He had made mistakes when it came to Judy and his feelings for her, and ended up causing more damage than good to both of them. Despite knowing he had burned a bridge in losing his chance with Judy, the understanding of how badly he had handled things and risked them both by trusting Silvia left him sure of his next step. He had decided the right thing to do would be to break up with Silvia and cut ties…and possibly go into witness protection to hide from her afterward. To do any of that, he needed to find her.

Nick remained lost in thought as he followed Judy slowly out to the motor pool, where Clawhauser had a cruiser waiting for them. For once Nick wondered if Clawhauser might actually move faster than either he or Judy. At least Judy had a bounce in her step again, even if she was moving slower than he remembered.

"Hey, guys!" the bubbly cheetah called out as Judy opened the door for Nick and they both slid inside. "Chief tells me that we're going to see some mob boss. This is so exciting!"

Nick grinned at the enthusiasm and shrugged. "Once you see one mob boss, they're all about the same, Benji. You have the address?"

"Yup!"

Beside Nick, Judy was already tapping on her phone. "I'll let him know we're on our way. I doubt his bears would like to be surprised by a police car rolling up. Nick and I would probably be okay, but you could be in trouble."

The cheer faded instantly from Clawhauser's face, his cheeks drooping the way Nick's ears might if he were afraid. "What kind of trouble?"

"The kind where they put you in icy water until you sink," Nick explained as Clawhauser put the car in gear and began driving. "Let's stay on his good side, okay?"

"I didn't sell him the skunk-butt rug," noted Judy, still typing.

"We all make mistakes," Nick snapped right back. "Let's not act like I'm the only one to ever sell a skunk-butt rug."

The car remained silent for a minute, with Judy's thumbs paused over the screen of her phone and Clawhauser looking back at them in the rear view mirror. Grumbling, Nick rubbed at his aching chest. "I was speaking figuratively. We've all done stupid things. The skunk-butt rug is my proverbial 'stupid thing.' My literal skunk-butt rug is a little more dramatic. Now, can I stop saying skunk-butt?"

Clawhauser giggled at that, and Judy finished sending her text. After a few minutes, she received a reply and put her phone away. "We're cleared at the gate," she said. "Let's hope he knows something."

Half an hour later, the cruiser rolled into the huge estate on the edge of Tundratown, pulling past two heavily-armed polar bears. Nick watched in the side mirror as those same bears closed the gate behind them and raised a chain over the road. No going back.

The car soon reached the house proper, and Clawhauser brought it to a stop just outside the front door. As soon as he parked the car, a burly bear in a jogging suit opened the door and reached past Clawhauser to grab the keys. Once the bear had them in paw, he stepped back and motioned for them to approach the house, where another bear waited in the doorway.

"This…this is fun," hissed Clawhauser, getting slowly out of the car, while Nick and Judy did the same. "You two definitely have more excitement than I do. You sure he's…you know…friendly?"

Nick shook his head, as Judy nodded hers, sending Clawhauser's tail into a death-flop on the ground.

The bear that had met them led the trio to the door, after which the second polar bear guided them through the house until they reached a study that Nick had been in more times than he was comfortable with. The bear shoved them inside and closed the door, sealing them in.

"Is this normal?" Clawhauser asked nervously, facing a large empty desk.

"Pretty much," Judy answered, while Nick surveyed the room. "He should be here soon. Don't talk in here. It makes Nick paranoid."

Nick snorted and kept his attention on the far door. "It's not paranoid when a crime lord tells you he'll feed you your own tail, skin you, and put you on display in the museum. Being afraid then is just good business. I still say Mister Big put up that taxidermy exhibit of ancient foxes to emphasize what he would do to me. Having the male fox mounted by a sabertooth shrew was beyond insulting."

When Nick looked over his shoulder, he found Clawhauser was staring at him with abject horror on his face, his paws clutched together.

"It's better now," Nick said, patting Clawhauser's arm and smirking. "Judy's the godmother to his grandchild. That has to count for something."

Benjamin's eyes darted to Judy, who gave him a halfhearted grin and shrugged before rocking from toes to heels and back nervously. "Is that…does that break any regulations?" the cheetah asked. "Crime lord and all…"

"Four," Judy answered before Nick could lie. "Bogo had him retroactively listed as an informant, which sort of makes it okay."

"Sort of?"

Judy opened her mouth to answer again, but froze as her ears shot up. A second later Nick could hear the footfalls of approaching bears.

"Quiet!" Nick whispered, a moment before the far door opened. Marching grimly, Mister Big's polar bear bodyguards entered the room to stand one on either side of the desk. After them, a third came in and placed his paws on the desk.

The bear slowly opened his paws and revealed Mister Big's chair, then turned it around to face them so the shrew could look at the guests.

"To what do I owe this visit?" asked the old shrew, his eyebrows tilting to hint at who he might be looking toward. "It is not every day that police show up in my home."

Nick swallowed hard and took a step forward. "Sir, we wanted to know if you had heard anything about a new crime family…"

Mister Big waved one of his tiny paws dismissively, holding up his ring for Nick.

Rushing over, Nick did his best to kiss the ring, which was small enough that he had always feared accidentally pulling it off the shrew's finger. Once that was done, Mister Big nodded and held up his other paw to keep the room silent. "I do know of these mammals," he said, folding his paws in his lap. "They step into my businesses, my plans. This is not appreciated."

"What do you know of them?" Nick asked quickly.

The shrew rested his head on one paw, regarding Nick skeptically. "I don't ignore threats to my business, Nicky. When four savages—and I mean this in the traditional sense—come into my turf and begin causing trouble, it's hard not to notice. What do you want to know?"

"Four?" Judy asked, stepping up beside Nick, her chin just barely reaching the top of the desk. "There's only four of them?"

"Only four who started this," Mister Big corrected, nodding. "They took over a few…competitors, shall we say? There are far more than four now, but those are the ones you want. The rest will scatter when their leaders are gone. The others treat those four as almost religious figures."

"And you'll snatch up their turf," Nick added, smirking.

Mister Big's casual smile left little doubt, though he kept quiet.

Judy hurriedly wrote down some of the details on her notepad. "Do you know who they are?"

"I do not," the shrew replied. "The leopard your police killed during the ambush at the warehouse was one. The rhino, a second."

"That wasn't in the news," Clawhauser said, raising a paw. "How…how does he…?"

Mister Big leaned a little to stare at Clawhauser. "Who is the goofy-looking one?"

"Nick," Judy blurted out, smirking when Nick glared at her. Almost as an afterthought, Judy held up her carrot pen as a warning that she might be recording the banter.

Mister Big's eyebrows rose, but he let the joke pass.

Stepping forward, Clawhauser offered a massive paw. "Officer Clawhauser…um…sir."

Mister Big entirely ignored the gesture and returned his attention to Nick. "I do know that the newcomers are serious about their business. There is talk of Night Howler serum being bought up, as well as more common weapons. They have begun moving on my…associates. The police are only one target."

"Can we count on your help to stop them?" Nick asked, not entirely sure whether he was going too far.

"You already have it, Nicky," the shrew replied, smirking. "You should get the call shortly about a warrant you needed. A favor for an old friend. While you look into this, I will see what more I can get for the two of you…and your clown. This should draw some extra attention my way. I am curious what our new rivals will do about it."

The buzz of Judy's phone made Nick smile, despite the remark about Clawhauser. Sure enough, she held up the screen for him to see the message from Bogo.

 _Judge just approved the warrant and ordered us to get on-site immediately. –B_

"Go and see what you can find," Mister Big said dismissively, gesturing for them to leave. As Nick started to turn, he added, "And Nicky…do the right thing for the right reasons."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nick demanded, but the bear behind Mister Big had already picked up the small chair and was leaving. "Do you know what we're going to find at the bar?"

The bears left the room without a word, slamming the door in passing.

"Let's go, Nick," Judy insisted, grabbing his arm and pulling him toward Clawhauser.

Snarling, Nick could only feel as if he were being manipulated once again, and a seed of dread began to grow in the pit of his stomach.

 _Why can't anyone be blunt with me? It would make life so much easier._


	28. Chapter 7-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 7.2 – Starting Over**

 **July 11** **th** **, Monday – ZPD Precinct One**

When the cruiser reached the Slo Does Bar, Judy had to grab Nick to keep him from trying to find a way to exit before the wheels had even stopped moving. He did not argue, but she could easily see the concern and strain across his face, not all of which was from his wounds. The stress was causing him to breathe harder, though he did not seem to notice. She certainly did.

On the street around them, several other police cars had already pulled up with lights on. They had secured the location, but Chief Bogo and a newer officer who Judy did not know were waiting at the entrance to the bar. Through the open windows of the cruiser, Judy could hear Francine talking with some of the other officers, coordinating their actions.

"Take it slow," Judy warned Nick, who appeared to be ignoring her. "We're here to look around. We're not taking lead."

Nick nodded and fumbled with the door handle, still too agitated to realize the cruiser did not allow exit from the back-seat. Judy waited with Nick tugging on the handle until at last Clawhauser came around and let them out. As he did, Judy grabbed Nick's sleeve and held tight, keeping him from running.

They walked up the sidewalk quickly, though Judy could feel the tension through her hold on Nick and had no doubt he would have been moving as fast as he could if she let go for a second. Thankfully, so long as she held him, he was willing to take his time, even if he was on the verge of dragging her. Soon enough they reached Bogo, who grunted in acknowledgement as they got close.

As an afterthought, Judy reached to the back of her belt and verified that she had her fox taser. It was certainly not for Nick, but after realizing how easily she could be at risk on the job while her side healed, having it handy had been somewhat reassuring. Walking into the unknown made it even more reassuring, especially when Silvia was potentially part of the situation.

"No sign of movement inside," the chief noted, motioning toward four more officers who were stationed at the windows and alley entrance to the bar. "This should be quick and easy, but I want you two to stay out here. We'll let you know when you can enter. Francine is handling coordination, but I'm your escort inside."

Judy gave her agreement, but Nick stayed quiet, staring at the bar's front door. His ears were cocked forward and his tail was all but frozen in place.

 _He might still love her,_ Judy reminded herself, trying to keep any emotion off her face. _All he's been through and we're not done with this yet. Be ready, Judy. When we do find her, he may go right back to her arms. It's his choice. Be happy for him if it works out. Don't let him see anything but happiness, even when you want to tase her. So long as she keeps her paws off you, you're not allowed to hurt her, Judy. She tries to go after you and then she's fair game._

With a grunt Bogo kicked in the door of the tavern. Two officers raced inside immediately, their flashlights sweeping across tables until Judy could no longer see them in the back end of the room, where the light from the street could not reach.

Almost two minutes later, a call came from the inside of the bar. "We're clear! No one inside!"

Judy had to plant herself to keep Nick from pulling her off her paws. She held him until Bogo had gone inside, and then she released Nick and followed him into the dark bar.

Having rarely been to a bar herself, Judy had not known what to expect, but the interior of the Slo Does was hardly what she had anticipated. Tables were strewn about, and even a pool table to one side of the bar had been flipped over. Broken glasses lay near the bar itself, and a strong scent of spilled alcohol was unmistakable.

"It didn't look like this last time," Nick said softly, carefully picking his way across the room, his paws narrowly missing piles of broken glass. He went to the bar itself and leaned over it to look at the other side. "Blood."

Judy's heart skipped a beat as she hurried to join Nick. He was right. She could already smell blood and soon spotted it on the shards of glass along the floor. There had been some kind of fight, and someone had been cut more than once on the broken mugs.

Bogo moved back to the entrance and shouted out to the other officers, "Get me a medical team, just in case!"

Slowly Nick moved around to the serving side of the bar, with Judy following a few steps behind. When he stopped, she slid past him, tiptoeing through more broken glass. Near her toes, she saw one of the broken mugs had dried blood across the jagged edge. Judy bent down, getting low to the ground so she could sniff at it.

"Cougar," Nick told her before she could identify the scent. "It's her bartender's. I can smell Silvia here too. I think the bartender's name is…was…Marcia."

Judy looked up at Nick to be certain of how he was handling things and found he had gone entirely cold and expressionless. The fear and uncertainty was overwhelming him, and he had opted to hide everything, lest he lose control. For once she was thankful he had that kind of self-awareness and willingness to compartmentalize his feelings. Had he broken down…she knew she would have been close behind out of worry for him. If he collapsed under the weight of his worry, she would have no choice but to drag him outside and commiserate.

"She's not here, Nick," Judy reminded him, though if he heard her, she could not be certain. "That's got to be a good sign."

As Judy stopped talking, a low growl was barely audible through the floor. She briefly thought she had imagined it, but Nick's ears shot up too and their eyes met.

"That sounded…" Judy looked around at the floor under her paws. Brushing aside some of the glass, she found a simple trap door had been set into the floorboards, with a handle concealed by a set of boxes. "Another room below! Bogo, we may have something!"

Sweeping aside the rest of the glass and empty boxes, Judy yanked on the door handle, lifting a large panel away. Below it, a narrow staircase led down into a cellar that extended well beyond the edge of the light. A very faint flickering hinted at some light source below, but it gave her nothing past the bottom of the stairs. The scents of decay and feces hit her like a wave. Judy could hardly imagine how awful the smell was for Nick's more sensitive nose.

"Hopps!" Bogo roared, rushing to them and pushing past Nick, his hooves crunching the glass they had to avoid. "I told you two that you were here as a courtesy. Neither of you is in any condition to lead the way."

"Then get someone to lead!" Nick snapped, speaking through bared teeth. "Silvia could be down there. If you don't find someone, I'm going myself."

Judy held her ground at the top of the stairs, intending to stop Nick if he tried to force his way past. Thankfully, Bogo put his radio back onto his belt and drew a flashlight and tranquillizer gun. "You two can follow," he assured them, approaching the stairs. He eyed them with a deep frown that Judy easily recognized as wondering if he would fit, but aside from being forced to turn his shoulders, he slid though and down into the more open space below. "Stay close."

Judy let Nick pass her, then hugged close behind him as he struggled down the steps, keeping both paws on the walls to maintain his balance. She had an easier time but could feel the strain the steep staircase put on her side—she guessed Nick was only managing it through stubbornness. Deep down, she wished she could drag him back to the cruiser and treat him like a misbehaving kit, but she knew better.

"There's another room, possibly a hallway," Bogo called over his shoulder, and his beam of light swept across a large doorway and an open space past that.

Judy's ears picked up movement and she reached out past Nick to catch Bogo's arm to stop him as he reached the floor. Raising a finger to her muzzle, she got both Nick and Bogo to be quiet as she listened, her ears turning to track the noise.

A faint scratching of claws on stone was the first sound Judy could make out. There was a mammal nearby. A moment later paw pads brushed across the floor, letting her know the mammal was moving around, but before she could determine the source of the echoing sounds, it stopped moving again. Raising her paw, Judy signaled to the others that she heard something, but shook her head when Bogo motioned for her to point it out.

Nodding, Bogo advanced into the hallway, keeping his weapon up. Nick barely stayed behind him, his nose nearly alongside Bogo's waist.

Trailing them by a few steps, Judy searched the walls for the purpose of the cellar, even as she heard more movement. She could make out old shelves that had likely been extra stock for the bar, but they were mostly empty. On the floor near most of the shelves were empty boxes that had been torn open, their contents emptied. Searching for anything else, Judy's eyes fell on a dark patch of wall across the room from where the others were going, and she stopped, trying to focus her eyes well enough to make out the shape.

"Chief?" Judy asked, fumbling on her belt for her phone. She found it and tapped the screen to turn on the flash. Raising her phone, Judy found herself looking straight into Silvia's face, though Judy was certain Silvia no longer recognized her.

Her body huddled into a small ball in the corner, Silvia's wide, savage eyes stared back at Judy with terror and hatred—and no recognition. Deadly white teeth were bared, and Judy realized that Silvia's muzzle was entirely caked with dried blood. Step by step, Silvia advanced on all fours, letting out a deep guttural growl. Judy knew the demeanor from having seen it more than once before.

Night Howlers.

"Nick!" Judy yelped, backing away in a hurry. Silvia kept moving toward her, never so much as blinking. The flex of her haunch muscles let Judy know the attack was coming.

Everything happened at once. Silvia charged. Judy tried to backpedal to Bogo, hoping he might be able to get a shot off before Silvia reached them. Judy could hear Bogo behind her, but Silvia was coming too fast and Judy had no weapon on her other than her fox taser—something she still wanted to keep hidden from Nick. There was no time to reach for it, and Judy felt claws bear down on her, slamming her to the ground.

"Dammit, I have no shot!" Bogo shouted, and Judy could hear movement around her as Bogo tried to adjust his position without stepping on Nick.

Hot breath puffed against Judy's cheek as she shielded her face with her arm, knowing the strike was coming. Those fangs could kill her in seconds, and even if Bogo fired, it would take longer for Silvia to collapse than it would for her to rip Judy apart. Already the fox's claws dug into her uniform, and Judy felt Silvia rear back to bite at her face or throat. She held her breath, knowing she was about to feel fangs dig into her flesh.

Abruptly Silvia fell away and Judy looked around in panic, trying to make sense of what had happened. Rolling onto her side, she saw Nick had tackled Silvia and had both of his arms wrapped around her neck and shoulder, struggling to keep her from biting him or going back after Judy. Even over Silvia's savage growling and flailing, Judy could hear Nick screaming in agony.

Judy had no way to get to Nick quickly and instead hoped he had enough presence of mind to react. She reached back onto her belt.

"Nick!" she yelled, clicking the power switch and throwing the taser across the floor. "Use that!"

Nick released Silvia as the taser slid into his paw. She snapped and nearly bit his face, but he threw himself onto his side. Rolling, he drove the sparking taser into Silvia's stomach.

The deafening crackle of the weapon was almost immediately replaced with whimpers and the scent of burning fur. With one more lurch, Silvia hit the ground at Nick's paws.

Scrambling across the floor, Judy reached Nick as he collapsed, clutching his chest. Sliding her paw into his shirt, she found blood oozing from his bandages on both the front and back. Thankfully he did not appear to have any new cuts or bites. Grabbing the taser from his paw and turning it off, she helped him lean against the wall.

"I'll get you out of here," Judy said, but Nick shook his head.

"I'm just out of breath. I'll live, Carrots. I want to see this through."

Looking around, Judy saw Bogo was already fastening cuffs and a muzzle on Silvia. He soon had her secured and glowered at Nick. "You two are no end of trouble, you know that, right?" the chief asked, huffing loudly.

Nick chuckled. "That's why you hired me, sir."

A loud clattering on the stairs drew Judy's attention, and she saw a wolf officer hurrying down to join them. She went straight to Silvia, picked her up, and carried her up the stairs.

"Let's get done with this," Bogo said once the three of them were alone again. "This place is creeping me out."

Nick sat up and looked first to Judy's paw, which was still in his shirt and then to the taser in Judy's free paw. "I need to get one of those. Best way to break up with an ex I've ever seen. Might be useful at bars too. When she's in her right mind, mind if I borrow that again?"

Growling halfheartedly, Judy slid the taser back onto her belt. She rebuttoned his shirt and then helped him onto his paws. Despite his efforts to pull away, Judy kept both paws on his stomach, in case he lost his balance.

"If you two are done," Bogo muttered, his eyes on Judy's paws, making her a little self-conscious, though she chose not to back down. Thankfully Nick did not ask her to. "Let's go."

They set off again, this time making their way into the next room without incident. There, Judy could see occasional flashes from a broken lightbulb that sparked on the ceiling more than twenty feet away. In those flickers and the light from Bogo's flashlight, she gradually realized the room was far larger than the bar above and filled with cages.

"What is all this?" Judy asked, though the befuddled stares of the others seemed to echo that confusion.

The flashlight slowly revealed more of the room, and Judy dearly wished she had stayed outside. Though the cages themselves were empty, a huge swath of blood covered much of the middle of the room. When she squinted, she could make out a crumpled body—or what was left of one—shoved into one corner. Bogo's flashlight settled on that mangled corpse, revealing exposed bone and gore. "I can't even tell what that was," he admitted, shaking his head. "I've seen wood chippers do less damage."

Nick wandered away from the others, heading near the cages. Judy hesitated and continued across the room to get a better idea of anything else in there, while Bogo checked the corpse.

Coming around the line of cages, Judy spotted something else in the dark. Raising her phone, she lit up a large chair that seemed entirely out of place in the basement. Beside it lay a toppled video camera on a tripod. "I have something," Judy announced, going to the camera. Flipping it over, she found the battery was low but not empty. "A camcorder. Do we want to watch this here or back at the station?"

Bogo made his way over to her, carefully sweeping the room with his flashlight. "Room is empty other than the body and this. We should be safe. Given that we still don't know who sold us out, I would rather we watch it here in case someone we know is implicated."

A moment later Nick came over and sat cross-legged on the floor, still clutching his chest.

"Okay," Judy said, opening the viewfinder on the camera. There was only one video on the digital storage, so there was no question about which to watch. Nervously, she put her thumb on the Play button and pressed it.

The screen lit up immediately, and Judy could make out Silvia, even on the tiny display. The fox was on her knees, a rope fastened to her neck with a small padlock and to the wall nearby. Turning, Judy spotted the ring set into the stone wall where a small bit of rope remained.

"Three chances," a deep male voice stated, somewhere off camera, and Silvia lowered her face. "I gave you three chances to get control over things. You know I rarely give that many. You have failed."

Baring her teeth briefly, Silvia snarled and snapped back, "I tried! You wanted one or the other gone. I did my job. Nick was mine and the bunny was scared. You promised me that if I could take him away from the ZPD, he would be safe! You had them both attacked! That wasn't our deal."

"The situation changed," the voice explained. Judy searched the edges of the frame for any hint of who might be speaking, but if he had been sitting in the chair, the camera would not have caught anything. "Explain what you did and I'll give you another chance to be useful. I want the ZPD to understand when they find this."

Silvia grated her claws across the stone floor. After a moment, she looked up at the camera. "Nick, I did care about you, but you were a job. I was supposed to draw you away from the ZPD. It was that or you died with a bullet in the head. If you are alive to see this, either you or your partner will be killed because I couldn't pull you away. Half the department in every precinct was the plan. I chose to spare you…that's why I'm here now."

"Explain why you are in the city to begin with."

Sighing, Silvia looked entirely defeated. "I was brought to Zootopia at your discretion. You set me up as the owner of this bar to give yourself a location to move slaves before taking them from the city. My job was to act as a lookout and ensure the ZPD was unaware. I obeyed, because otherwise you would kill me and my family. Basically I'm your spy."

The other voice laughed, and Judy saw movement at the edge of the camera, but it was not what she had hoped for. Instead a female cougar tumbled into the frame as though kicked, dropping her near Silvia. Whoever was behind the camera was still not visible.

"Marcia," Nick said quietly, shaking his head. Judy could not pick up a trace of emotion in his voice. "Friend of Silvia's and the bartender."

"I promised you a chance to be useful," the voice stated again. As he spoke, Silvia's attention remained on the cougar, who appeared to be unconscious. "I want the ZPD to understand that interfering may not be in their best interest. I need an example to be made so they see what I'll do even to my own property. I know they won't listen, but the message needs to be that they should stay far from my business."

Silvia's eyes widened, and she moved to put herself between the speaker and Marcia. "Please don't! She isn't even part of this."

Judy's finger hovered near the Pause button, wondering if she should stop the video. Looking at Nick, she could read nothing in his face other than a hint of worry in his eyes.

"You misunderstand, you filthy creature," the voice answered, and Judy could make out the sound of the large chair creaking. "I want them to understand how much control I have over you. I want them to watch you betray things you care about. I want them to understand that prey—and even lowly predators like you—are little better than tools, and any tool can be used as a weapon."

A loud bang of a gun in the video echoed in the room, and Judy saw a purple stain spread across Silvia's neck fur. The horror in her eyes left little doubt about what it might be.

"Don't worry, little fox," purred the speaker, as Silvia tried desperately to wipe the Night Howler serum off her neck. "This is not the same mixture that we used in the past. You'll be yourself for some time. You might even keep your memories through the change. By the time you break free of that rope, you will be nearly lost to the serum. It should take an hour, maybe a bit less. You'll know everything that is happening. If you are found by someone quickly enough, there will be no harm done at all. Let us hope that your pet finds you right away."

The chair creaked again, and Judy could make out the sounds of heavy paws marching out of the room, while Silvia remained in the middle of the screen, sobbing as she wiped at her neck. Soon she fell forward, putting her forehead on the floor as she cried.

"Fast-forward it," Bogo said.

Judy did as she was asked, watching as the video zoomed ahead, with Silvia moving around the frame, alternating between trying to get the dye off her fur and leaning against the wall crying. Judging by the timestamp of the video, nearly forty minutes later Marcia sat up slowly, and Silvia buried her face in her paws, pushing herself up against the wall.

A few seconds of fast-forwarding later, Judy released the button as she saw Silvia slowly sink down onto all fours. Growling, she backed away from Marcia, baring her fangs as she tried to scare off the potential threat that lay nearby, still holding her head.

"What's going on?" Marcia asked, wiping blood from her forehead. "Silvia?"

Silvia barked and growled, tugging at the rope to get as far as she could from the cougar.

In unison, Judy, Nick, and Bogo looked across the room to the bloody corpse in the corner.

"You shouldn't watch this," Judy told Nick, reaching for the button to stop it, but Nick caught her wrist.

"I need to know," he said firmly. "We can skip ahead. I just need to know if she…if it was her."

Judy nodded and held the fast-forward button again. The scene raced forward, showing hours upon hours of Marcia talking at Silvia and trying to approach her unsuccessfully. For a time Marcia left the frame, but she returned a half hour later and sat down to watch Silvia, who had not calmed in the slightest. By this point Silvia was so wide-eyed that Judy realized she had moved from trying to scare off a threat to absolute terror that she was going to die.

"They must have blocked the door to the bar," Bogo noted, shaking his head.

Suddenly the video erupted into motion, and Judy took her thumb off the button. Nearly twenty hours had passed and Silvia was thrashing against the rope, biting and clawing to free herself. Across the room, Marcia scrambled to her feet and backed away.

Sighing, Nick told them, "She's starving. Even if she's afraid of a cougar, that's the only possible food in the area. Attack and maybe die, or stay where she is and definitely die."

Judy and Bogo stared at Nick in horror, and he shrugged.

"Instincts are all still there," Nick explained emotionlessly. "We know what we're supposed to do, even if it's not what any mammal would do anymore."

The rope abruptly broke in the video, drawing their attention back as Marcia shouted for help. Silvia rushed off-screen, and screams began to echo through the room. After several long minutes of screams, followed by whimpers, and then ripping noises, Silvia could be seen dragging something vaguely body-shaped into the far corner of the room.

"That's enough," Bogo insisted, taking the camera from Judy's paws. "You two get out of here. Hopps, take Nick back to the precinct. He's bleeding all over my crime scene."

"Sir—" Nick began to argue, but Bogo held up a hoof to stop him.

"Not up for debate. You are too close to this. I'm sorry, Wilde. Once we can get the antidote into Silvia and she begins showing some hint of sanity, we'll allow you to visit her. That's the best I can do. Go do some paperwork and keep your phone close."

Judy grabbed Nick's paw, calming any argument he appeared ready to give. "Chief, do you want me to come back?"

Bogo shook his head and stared at the camera in his hooves. "You two stay together. Wilde will say I'm overreacting, but I think he'll need a friend close as we learn more. This is not a case any of us should be dealing with alone."

Snarling, Nick pulled his paw away from Judy. "That's exactly why they're picking us off. Less of us to deal with the problem. Sending us away puts you in danger."

"I know," Bogo replied calmly, gesturing toward the stairs out of the basement. "You have your orders."

Despite Nick's attempt to avoid her, Judy caught his arm again and pulled him from the room. The fight went out of him quickly, likely due to how weak he still was, but soon he allowed her to lead him out of the bar and back to the street. By the time they reached Clawhauser and the cruiser, Nick's head was low and he appeared to be so lost in thought that Judy was not even certain he could or would hear anything around him.

Eyes widening in shock, Clawhauser actually managed to keep from saying anything as they approached, instead running ahead to open the door of the cruiser for them. Once they were inside, Judy let him know where they were going and then returned her attention to Nick as the cruiser pulled into traffic.

Nick was glaze-eyed, staring blankly at the back of the seats in front of him. In his lap both paws twitched, as though he were trying to hold on to something.

"You did all you could," Judy said, pulling one of his paws onto her lap and holding it tightly. "This isn't your fault."

"I couldn't protect her," Nick whispered, his eyes still distant.

"That's not your responsibility," she insisted, though she was not sure if Nick even heard her. "She made the mistakes that led to this. We'll get the antidote into her and she'll recover."

Nick shook his head slowly. "You saw the video. Someone doesn't recover from that. They said she'll remember it all. I should have gone looking sooner. I should have been there."

Unbuckling her seatbelt, Judy shifted onto her knees on the seat so she could look Nick in the eyes as she pulled his face toward hers. "You were unconscious in the hospital when that all happened. You can't blame yourself. There was nothing you could do."

"I don't know if I can protect anyone I care about," he admitted, closing his eyes. "I thought taking this job would let me save people. All I ever see is death and those damn Night Howlers. I…I can't help."

Still holding Nick's cheeks, Judy forced him to look at her. "Nick, you saved my life today. You saved my life two weeks ago. I can't speak for anyone else, but you are my hero, no matter what you might think about how things are turning out. I hope I count as someone you care about."

At that Nick finally broke a slight smile, though it was strained. He watched her for a moment, then reached out and pulled her into a hug—not a tight one thankfully, given both of their wounds.

"Awwwww," Clawhauser exclaimed, and Judy dearly wanted to find something to throw at him. "It's good to see you two close again. You're both so cu…um…hey, look at that traffic!"

Judy glowered but clung to Nick with her face buried in his neck fur, expecting him to pull away at any moment. They made it all the way to the station before he finally insisted on extricating himself. To Judy, that still might not have been long enough, if the sadness in his eyes was any indication. He was going to need friends close at hand for some time.


	29. Chapter 7-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 7.3 – Starting Over**

 **July 14** **th** **, Thursday Afternoon – Meadowlands Health**

"She should come around any time now," explained the deer nurse, checking his clipboard. "Doctor said two to three days on the antidotes is about normal for someone affected for that long. We've already seen some hints that she's starting to wake up, which is why we called. The sooner the ZPD can take her off our paws the better."

Nick did not say anything. He was not entirely sure that he could if he tried. The past two days, he had tried to put all of this out of his mind by working until late in the evening, but now he could no longer ignore it. He was going to have to face Silvia in whatever condition she might awake. Nick could not be certain if he was more afraid of dealing with Silvia herself, her newfound history, or the trauma that went with her experiences in the last two weeks. In all honesty, he wanted to deal with none of it. It was going to be bad enough testifying against her at trial, but seeing her so soon was far rougher.

The room was a far cry from what Nick had experienced during his own stay in the same hospital. Bars covered the window, and most of the unneeded equipment had been removed from the room. Anything sharp was long gone. The prey who ran the hospital were terrified of Silvia. Given the charges leveled against her, it was no surprise.

Silvia herself had been cuffed to the bed frame by both wrists and ankles. Restraint straps held her in place. There was little chance of her moving more than a few inches in any direction, which was the intent after she had bitten a nurse the day before during one of her more lucid moments.

"If you want, we can get a few more orderlies in here to help," the nurse went on. "Just in case. The red button on the wall will both call us and add a tranquillizer dose to her drip."

Nick looked down at his side to where Judy stood. She had tried to slink out of the room more than once but finally appeared willing to stay. He knew she did not want to be a part of his first meeting with Silvia since she had betrayed them. However, Nick doubted he could have endured even standing where he was without Judy as his emotional support.

"No, we have this," Nick assured the nurse, giving him a false smile.

Excusing himself, the nurse hurried from the room, ducking to keep his antlers from catching on the top of the doorway.

Nick remained near the door for several minutes, trying to decide what to do. In better times he might have gone to Silvia's side and taken her paw—the way Judy had for him—but it felt fake now. Her confessions that she had been tricking him made him sick to his stomach, almost more than the images of her tearing her own friend apart. Still, he needed to hear it from her and he needed to do his job, no matter the personal cost. The fact that she had tried to hurt Judy—he needed to keep that entirely out of his mind if he was going to be professional.

"You don't have to do this," Judy reminded him, as though she could read his thoughts. "Someone else can talk to her when she wakes up. If it's too painful, you can come back another time for the personal part of this. I'll read the charges if you need to leave."

"You think because the first relationship I've been in for years was all a con, I can't be objective?" Nick asked, smirking to hide his actual feelings. "I'm a fox, Carrots. It's who we are. She hustled me. Hard to be mad when I was the one doing it for years."

"That was money, Nick. This is…more personal."

Nick could not argue with that, no matter how he tried. Instead he opted to go to the chair beside the bed to wait.

Thankfully they did not have to wait long. Within a half hour, Silvia began to groan and try to move, though it took almost a full hour before she opened her eyes, her golden irises struggling to focus as they roamed across the room. Finally she spotted Nick and her eyes widened, some degree of recognition showing through the confusion.

"Nick?" Silvia gasped, attempting to sit up. The restraints snapped taut and she looked around in a panic. Briefly her eyes locked onto Judy, but they came right back to Nick. "What's going on? Why am I restrained?"

Leaning back in the chair, Nick shrugged. "How much do you remember?"

That seemed to surprise Silvia, and she slowly licked her muzzle before replying. "Nothing. Where did you find me?"

Nick knew a lie when he read one on a mammal's face. Silvia could hide most of her tells, but her eyes showed clearly that she was afraid he knew everything.

"Let's start at the top," he said, trying to keep emotion out of his voice. It was far harder than he had hoped. "Before you deceived me…"

"I…what?" Silvia asked, her nervous grin letting Nick know he was not wrong. "You know I would never do that. You know I love you."

"Do I know that? You lied to me about Judy attacking you. You lied to me about why we were going out. Are there any other lies I missed?"

"Nick—"

"You are under arrest, if you haven't already figured that out. You're being charged with assault on a ZPD officer."

Silvia's muzzle twitched angrily as she glanced toward Judy. "I'll confess to that. No sense in lying now."

"Good. Now about the other things you hid. We saw what's in your bar's basement."

Silvia's ears flattened back. "You found me there?"

"We found you and Marcia. What's left of her."

The calm broke abruptly on Silvia's face, and she flopped weakly back onto the bed. "I hoped it was all a nightmare. It's so hard to tell afterward. I'd hoped he didn't make me do that again."

"Again? This isn't the first time?"

Silvia turned her head slightly to stare at Nick. "I swear I didn't want to hurt you at the warehouse fight. Antonne was supposed to kill the bunny in the alley. I had to stop you before you could shoot at him. Anyone else I hurt was business. Attacking you was to save you."

Nick's skin went cold. He had not even considered that the original attack that left him with stitches all across his back and head could have been Silvia. Struggling, he attempted to hide any reaction. "Were you aware we'd be attacked after I left you at my apartment?"

Silvia's ears flattened back and she looked away.

"Any other times you attacked or aided an attack on another mammal?"

"Many," Silvia admitted, closing her eyes. "Most were before we got to Zootopia. He used me to scare prey into accepting bad deals. That's how he got a lot of his slaves. If they weren't scared enough…they had to disappear. He used the serum on me once before. For the former bar owner."

Nick's stomach lurched at the idea that not only had Silvia killed, but she had done it multiple times before he had met her and had not bothered to tell him. He dearly wanted to leave the room and go home, if only to burn all of his sheets and possibly scour his fur with soap for a few hours.

"We saw your confessions," Nick continued, hearing the catch in his voice. He was losing the ability to hide his feelings. Only a few more questions and he could go—he would have to go. "You were involved in attempting to kill or cripple ZPD officers? You knew that was the plan?"

A tear ran down Silvia's cheek. "Yes. I'll confess to that, as well. Target partners or teams. We didn't need to take down the whole department, just enough officers that the remainder were afraid to get involved. He wants the ZPD in shambles."

"And your intention with myself and Officer Hopps? I'm not leaving until you give me a straight answer on that."

"I'm sorry," Silvia said again, clenching her paws into fists. "They told me to get rid of one of you. I originally was going to kill the bunny, but when Finnick started talking about you, I realized it would be easier…kinder…to bring you in. With your history, I didn't think it would be hard to tear you away from the ZPD. He said I could keep you if I did it—"

"Keep me?" Nick demanded, any sadness lost instantly. All of his fear and grief shifted abruptly to anger. "Was I your pet?"

Silvia refused to look at him. "Where we come from, if you don't own something, it can be taken by someone else. I needed you to lose everything if I was going to break you. Anything less and you would never have accepted that you were the slave of another slave. It had to be done before you knew and settled before you got any idea of trying to get away."

Nick could not keep back his growl and only managed to quiet it when Judy put a paw on his shoulder. Reaching up, he touched her paw in return, feeling his anger fade quickly at that simple contact. How he could have imagined not having her at his side was a mystery to him. He needed her more than he liked to admit.

"One last question. We heard there were four that got this going," Nick said, taking a deep breath to steady himself. "Antonne, the leopard, and you. Who's the other leader?"

Silvia shook her head. "He'll already kill me. I can't have him go after my family. You've seen what he's willing to do. So long as I don't name him, my family is safe."

Nick nodded, got up, and slid the chair away from the bed. "If you won't answer that, we have no further questions. The local precinct will process—"

"Nick," Silvia cut in, finally looking up at him, "will you come back? If we flee Zootopia, maybe we can start over. Let others deal with what's coming."

Nick shook his head and put a paw on Judy's shoulder for emphasis on his decision. "You lost that chance when you attacked my friend and sold us out to killers. Good-bye, Silvia. I won't ever see you again and if I do, I won't be as nice as I've been today. You will be charged with multiple counts of attempted murder, assault on multiple ZPD officers, and probably a few dozen other offenses. Enjoy the sunlight from the window, you might not be seeing much more of that."

Turning to leave, Nick found himself walking quickly from the room, trying to get far from Silvia before he changed his mind or let sympathy for her plight overwhelm what he knew he needed to do. Even if she could turn her life around and someday get out of prison, he could not let her do it at his expense. Her willingness to use him as a pawn in her games left little doubt that she would try. This was not someone he could ever have any association with again.

"Nick?"

He kept walking, barely even hearing Judy. A few steps farther and she grabbed his paw and forced him to stop. "Nick, where are you going?" Judy demanded, her alert ears and wide eyes letting him know how worried she was.

Looking around, Nick realized he had not only left the hospital, but was standing on the sidewalk out front. He had covered quite a distance without even realizing. His chest was tight after the exertion, yet he was willing to bet he would have kept walking for a while if she had not stopped him.

"I need some time to think," he admitted, trying to remember where the nearest subway was. "We've got nothing new to go on, so we may as well call it a day. I have a very serious date tonight and the sooner I can get to that the better."

Judy's head cocked in confusion and her nose began twitching rapidly as her ears sank slowly. Nick tried not to let the surprise and dismay in her eyes rattle him too much. He had somewhat expected it.

"Drinking," Nick added quickly, grinning as the worry disappeared from her expression. "I need to get seriously liquored up after seeing her again. If it makes you feel any better, I'll probably bring Finnick so he can laugh at me. Turn off your phone if you don't want to listen to random sappy voice mails. I won't apologize for anything I say if you check your phone."

"That doesn't actually make me feel even a little bit better to know you're going out with him." Judy twisted her muzzle a little in deep thought. "Mind if I join you?"

That somewhat surprised Nick. "Why would you want to go?"

Judy shrugged and smiled up at him warmly. "I miss my friend and want to be there for you when you need someone to talk to who won't give awful advice. Besides…Jack's driving me crazy. I'd rather hold your ears back when you're vomiting than put up with him tonight."

"I'll pass on that for tonight, Carrots," he said and Judy's instant disappointment did not go unnoticed. "You're right, though. Going drinking with Finnick probably isn't in my best interests, so I'll hold off until another time. Bad Movie Saturday Night? Let's get an old tradition back on-track. Maybe drinks if we get bored."

That seemed to revive Judy's enthusiasm, and she smiled warmly back at him, bouncing very slightly on her toes. "Absolutely."

Nick paused, trying to decide how far he wanted to push his luck. Judy waited where she was, watching him as though sensing his indecision. "Dinner first?" he added, abruptly losing his nerve when her ears dropped like a leaden weight. "Never mind, that was asking too much…"

Judy put a finger to his mouth, stopping him. "Dinner's fine. Please stop talking or you'll make this weird. Friends can do dinner and a movie. No rules against it. Not even any regulations against it."

"It's a—" Nick caught himself and swallowed the word he had been about to use. He motioned vaguely in the direction of the subway. "I should go before I keep talking. I'll pick you up around six?"

Judy nodded and smiled crookedly at him. "I'll see you then, Slick. Don't forget, we still have to work tomorrow. If you come in with a hangover, I will turn the radio up as loud as Bogo will let me."

"I know, I know," he groused, scowling at her. "Just got to suck all the joy out of everything, don't you?"


	30. Chapter 7-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 7.4 – Starting Over**

 **July 16** **th** **, Saturday Evening – Savanna Central**

Judy hurriedly tossed three changes of clothing into her tiny closet, still questioning whether she should have gone with the gray shirt over the pale violet one she had on. It would have to do, as Nick was likely to show up at any minute. She wanted to make a good impression after so long with their friendship on the rocks, but found herself racing around the small apartment in a near-panic, trying to assure herself that everything was okay. It had been almost twenty straight minutes that her ears were straight up and they were beginning to hurt from the anxiety that went with that.

"Judy, you need to calm down!" Jack insisted for the hundredth time. The last time he had piped up, he had also stolen her furbrush and nearly gotten strangled for it. "It's just a movie!"

"And dinner," she reminded him, staring at herself in the mirror. Fur from ear tip to toe was freshly shampooed and brushed smooth. Her shirt was spotless, as were her jeans. The shirt was not too low-cut or too snug. The pants were fitted, but not too tight. Everything was simple and—she hoped—sent no messages. There was so little complexity to her outfit that she could not imagine why she was so nervous. She never wore jewelry or other accessories, so getting ready should not have turned into such an ordeal. In the past their nights out had barely occupied more than five minutes of preparation effort.

"Dinner and a movie," Jack conceded, sitting on her bed. He shook his head in dismay, intentionally flapping his ears about. Judy's ears dropped a little as she listened to her brother try to reason his way through things. "All this fuss over something you've done before with him. What's going on with you, Judy?"

"Absolutely nothing," she snapped in reply, adjusting the fur on her cheek where it almost showed the faint scars from her fight with Gideon as a child. Strangely, those scars worried her, whereas the ones on her arm from Silvia never crossed her mind. She was not even sure Nick had ever noticed the ones on her face, but for some reason she did not want them showing this particular night. "Just nervous."

Hopping off the bed, Jack came over to her and looked her over. "You didn't spend this much time getting ready for prom and you had three bucks trying to call you their date. One thought he was going to talk you into marrying him and have a hundred kits. I think he still thinks that."

"Shut it."

"Or graduation…high school or college. Didn't you pretty much throw your robe on over whatever you were already wearing?"

"I said, shut it, Jack."

"You didn't try this hard when you were pretending you liked girls so dad would stop setting you up. It was pretty great when mom tried to get you on that date with Molly though."

"Enough, Jack."

"You didn't even get this worked up when you were trying to catch that one buck's eye back…wait…are you…Judy, is this actually a real date?"

Judy's fur all stood on end in panic. Grabbing her brother by the collar of his shirt, she shoved him back against the desk. "No! This is just two friends…"

A grin slowly spread over Jack's smug face. "It is! I'm so proud of you Judy! I mean, it may be with a fox and the idea of you two—"

"Finish that thought and you'll be eating carrots through a straw," Judy warned, only half joking. "He'll be here any second, and I don't want you spouting off like that. He didn't call it a date, so it's not a date. Two friends. Dinner. Movie. Not a date."

Her ears shot back up as she heard steps in the hallway. After a second, she realized they were Bucky's and relaxed a little.

"Yeah, you're really convincing me this is nothing," Jack replied, still grinning. "I never thought you'd be the kinky sister, going after a predator. It's creepy, but cute."

From out in the hall, Bucky's overly loud voice announced Nick's arrival. "Hey, fox. We're watching you. Better not be skulking around after dark. We'll call the police."

"I'll keep that in mind. Kill and eat the bunny before sundown. Got it. Thank you for the warning. I'll adjust my schedule."

Judy clamped her eyes shut in dread. In the next apartment, she heard the door slam, followed by muttered arguing between Pronk and Bucky as to whether the fox was joking. Faintly she heard Nick chuckling, followed by a light knock on her door.

"Behave," she warned Jack, waving a finger under his nose.

Turning on her heel, Judy went to the door and popped it open. Standing at her doorstep, Nick was dressed in simple slacks and a dress shirt that did not look even remotely Hawaiian. For once he wore no tie, which struck her as somewhat comical. In one paw, he held a single violet flower, of the same type he had brought several weeks earlier.

"Thought we'd try the flower thing again," he said as she beamed at him, taking the flower and tucking it behind her ear. "I'm hoping that's not too much. Thought just one wouldn't ruin your appetite."

From behind her Judy heard Jack mutter, "Only one? Dang."

"We should get going!" Judy said, a bit more enthusiastically than she had intended, but she dearly wanting to get far from her brother before he said something inappropriate or speciesist. "Did you have any trouble getting here?"

Nick cocked his head and looked into the apartment, making Judy wonder if her brother was already up to no good. When she glanced back and saw Nick was looking toward her bed—and the fox plush she had forgotten to hide—she quickly pushed Nick into the hall and closed the door behind her.

"Was that—?"

"You were causing trouble with the neighbors on your way in," Judy cut in, trying to derail any questions about the stuffed animal.

"Trouble?" Nick looked down at her quizzically as she took his arm. "Oh…you heard the discussion in the hall?"

"Of course I did, Nick. Don't tease the neighbors. My brother probably heard that too. The last thing I need is him reporting things like that to my parents. They're just starting to accept that you're my friend. I don't want to start getting calls asking me to wear fox repellent as a perfume."

Nick laughed and led the way out of the building. "You already smell wonderful. I'll behave if it means no fox repellent."

Judy had expected their "date" would be similar to their past ones, before things had soured. They would walk to the theater a few miles down the road, far from her apartment and his, then go their separate ways after. This time, she had already altered that slightly by agreeing to let him come to her place—which seemed an easy concession since he had seen the apartment already—and dinner was new, but otherwise she expected the same.

To her surprise, when they reached the street, she found that Finnick's van sitting in front of her building. Thankfully Finnick was nowhere to be found.

"I thought for once I'd drive you," Nick explained, waving her toward the van. "Was loads of fun explaining to him why I wanted to borrow it. I'm starting to think he sees the van as something other than transportation."

Judy laughed nervously, climbing up into the passenger seat of the van. She swore she smelled something…herbal…about the inside of the vehicle, but put it out of her mind as Nick got into the driver's seat.

"So where are we actually going?" Judy asked, once Nick had driven them several blocks.

Smirking, Nick kept his eyes on the road as he answered. "I heard about this little diner not too far away. Silvia recommended it."

Judy had her paw on the door handle before Nick began laughing.

"I'm kidding, Carrots!" he insisted, shaking his head and swerving the van a little as he gestured for her to stop. "There's a pasta place near the theater. Nothing that will terrify a cute little bunny."

"Nick!"

His grin was back in full force. Judy had not even realized how much she had missed the playful, irreverent Nick who had disappeared for weeks. He was a handful, but it was good to have him back. So long as the "cute" remarks were in private and meant in jest, she could not even fault him for that.

They soon reached the restaurant, and to Judy's surprise, it was not a simple chain food joint, but what appeared to be a very old and likely family-owned building. The place only had ten tables that she could see, making her become abruptly nervous. This was no casual dinner.

"Nick, are you sure about this?" she asked, eyeing the far-better-dressed mammals already inside and wringing her paws. Many of the patrons were in suits and dresses. "We aren't dressed for this and…this can't be cheap."

"I'm sure, Carrots," Nick answered, opening the door for her. "After how big of an ass I've been the last few weeks, I owe you bigtime. Usual rules…I'll let you get the movie and I'll get snacks—or in this case, dinner. Consider this an apology, both for myself and for getting mauled by Silvia."

Self-consciously, Judy rubbed at the mostly healed scrapes under her arm fur where Silvia's claws had cut her and cautiously inched into the restaurant.

"I've never actually been in a place like this before," Judy admitted once they were both inside and waiting for the greeter to return. "Bunnyburrow isn't exactly the fine dining hub of the region. With a few million mouths to feed, the menu tends to be limited."

Nick smiled down at her. "Then I guess you'll have to follow my lead. Just be relaxed and order what sounds good. How they dress doesn't change anything except how good the food is."

Soon the greeter returned, and the suited elk gave both of them an ill-hidden scowl. "If you are looking for the fast-food place down the street—"

"Wilde party," Nick stated, his smile never wavering. "We have a reservation."

The elk sighed and checked the large book on the podium in front of him, his eyes widening slightly in surprise that Nick had apparently not been lying. Judy felt equally shocked and even more nervous than she had been. "Right this way."

They were led to a small table near the windows, where a large set of silverware waited—with far more forks than Judy could understand a purpose for. The chairs at the table were quickly changed out with ones of appropriate size by a passing waiter, and they were ushered into their seats.

"Nick, this is really nice," Judy managed to say, still awe-struck by the whole setting. It was far more than she expected from Nick, and certainly not something she had expected anyone to surprise her with for no good reason. "You don't owe me that big of an apology."

"I really do, Fluff. All joking aside, I treated you horribly, and you hadn't done anything wrong. I made assumptions and punished you for them…well…punished us both. I won't lie, I think I took a good share of the downside myself."

Judy's awe faded almost immediately at that. "Seriously? Nick, your girlfriend tried to break my arm so that she could go home and sleep with you. I think you came out a little ahead here."

"My girlfriend that wanted to kill you, ate her friends, and wanted to put a collar on me so that I could be a pet, while planning a murder-spree against our coworkers. I can see how that would look glamorous on the outside. Don't make assumptions, Fluff."

Judy laughed despite herself, letting the topic die as the waiter brought them menus. To her surprise nothing on the menu had a price alongside it. The options were stunning, most tailored for prey species, but seasoned or offering sides which she could see appealing to all. Some of the sauces she had not even heard of, let alone could pronounce.

"Maybe we should split this," she said slowly, looking up over her menu at Nick, but he did not appear concerned.

"I get the snacks, you get the movie. It's been the deal from the start. Don't go changing the rules on me. I am just a dumb fox. I might get offended or confused."

Grumbling to herself, Judy raised the menu again, hoping Nick would not be able to see how uncomfortable she was. Judy did not like feeling as though she could not take care of herself and knew full well that Nick was not the type to intentionally upset her on that topic, but this was rapidly crossing the line. That would be a fight for another time.

The meal itself went quickly to Judy's surprise, with course after course of small dishes that came the moment both of them finished what was already in front of them. Judy could not even identify half the things she ate, beyond "Some kind of salad with a yummy dressing" or "Pasta with a sauce that was white." Still, it was exquisite and Nick was in a good mood, making it easier for her to put aside the insane lengths he had gone to in making this happen.

"Thank you again," Judy said as the remnants of their main course were cleared away to make room for some sort of ice cream desert. Reaching across the table, she took Nick's paw in hers, smiling broadly when he did not resist. To her surprise the waiter backed abruptly away from the table, but she ignored him and assumed he was off to fetch the desert. "This is wonderful, Nick."

"Don't let it go to your head, Fluff," he answered, turning over his paw and clasping hers right back. "It won't be a regular thing. I just…I really wanted you to understand how sorry I was over the last few weeks. You—"

Anything else Nick said was lost to Judy as she overheard one of the mammals at the next table say, "Do you see those two? Disgusting. What respectable bunny would get so close to a _fox_ , let alone hold paws in public? Even if she weren't a bunny…who lets themselves be seen with a fox? This city is falling apart, I tell you."

Anger washed over Judy, and she dearly wanted to turn around and say something biting but instead made a point of keeping her paw on Nick's. If he understood why, he did not give her anything to go on, simply watching her as she tried to sort through her thoughts.

"I think I need a break," Judy said after a moment, looking around the restaurant until she spotted the restroom. "I'll be right back."

Nick nodded, but she could tell he was concerned he had done something wrong. She would have to explain later, but for the moment, Judy wanted to get far from the ignorant mammals behind her before she said anything she would regret. Nick would probably not appreciate her causing a scene.

Judy hurried through the restaurant and into the bathroom, going straight to the shorter sinks. There, she stopped, turned on the cold water, and patted some onto her ears to calm her nerves.

 _How can anyone still be like that?_ she asked herself, closing her eyes and covering her face with her paws. _I know I was ignorant when I came here, but they live in this city. Does everyone think foxes are monsters?_

The door to the bathroom opened behind her, and Judy shifted to washing her paws to cover for what had probably looked like crying. Finishing up, she turned to the fur drier and had her path cut off by a larger skunk, who studied Judy with what she could only describe as worry.

"Can I help you?" Judy demanded, trying to figure out some way to get past the larger female without being rude. Self-consciously, Judy flicked her paws toward the sink to dry them a bit more.

The skunk folded her paws in front of her and gave Judy the most condescending look Judy thought she might have ever seen. "Honey, I saw him touch you out there. There are mammals we can call. You don't have to put up with a fox that…"

"Whoa!" Judy blurted out, her wet paws forgotten. "He's my friend…my date!"

Frowning deeply, the skunk raised a handful of paper money, which Judy stared at in confusion.

"Take the money and get away from him," the skunk insisted. "I don't care how desperate you are, there are homeless shelters and other places you can go. I hate to see a cute bunny like you being abused by a fox like that. No matter how desperate you are, you don't have to let him force himself on you. It makes me sick to think about what you must be going through."

Disgusted, Judy slapped the skunk's paw aside and stormed out of the bathroom. She hurried across the restaurant until she reached the table—trying not to stare at the space behind her chair where the skunk woman had come from—and flopped miserably into her chair. Judy could see Nick's wide-eyed stare, but she was not ready to explain to him what had just happened.

"Don't worry," Judy told him after a moment, trying to keep her attention on the ice cream in front of her. "There's nothing wrong with anything you did. Other mammals are awful."

Slowly the fear faded off Nick's face, and he looked past her at the table behind her. Judy's paw froze with her spoon over the ice cream, realizing that Nick was about to do something. "No, no, no, no!" she whispered, grabbing his paw again. Thankfully the devilish look faded from Nick's eyes. "Not here. One terrible animal doesn't mean we need to ruin the evening. I won't have you getting blamed for doing something. If they already look down on foxes, this will only make that worse."

Nick slowly began to smirk. "You're right, and thank you for being the calm one. We tend to get used to ignoring it. I'm sorry you had to hear anything they said."

The chair behind Judy slid out as the skunk returned to her seat. Shifting slightly, Judy could see their chairs were very close together in the tiny restaurant, and the skunk was watching Judy from the corner of her eyes as she lifted her wine glass to her muzzle. That same condescending stare was aimed at Nick that the skunk had been directing Judy's way in the restroom.

Judy eased one of her legs off the chair and slid it back until she felt the leg of the skunk's chair under her toes. When she heard the skunk sip her wine, Judy kicked backward, rocking the other's chair dangerously, making her choke on her drink. Smugly Judy returned her attention to Nick.

"That was uncalled for, Carrots," Nick scolded, though his grin told her that he approved. "Behave yourself."

"Nope," Judy answered, trying to sound playful, but she was still mad. Deep down, she wished she had the nerve to stand up to mammals who treated Nick like that. After a moment of poking at her ice cream, Judy gave up and set the spoon aside. "Let's get going. I really don't like the clientele of this place."

Nick smiled and nodded, motioning toward the doors. "Already paid while you were away. Couldn't have you arguing with me about the bill."

Scowling, Judy got up and led the way to the entrance of the restaurant. For the briefest moment, she wondered if Nick had actually paid, but he shook hands with the elk at the entrance and she swore she saw Nick slip him some extra money.

The movie theater was not far away, and true to his word, Nick did allow Judy to get the tickets there, though she knew that comparing them with dinner was going to upset her for some time. Once they took their seats, Judy realized she was unsure how to act around Nick anymore. In the past, he had jokingly put his arm over her seat—mostly so he could poke her during suspenseful moments or steal her popcorn. Now, he was being overly cautious, and when their arms brushed on the armrest, Nick pulled both arms into his lap.

"What are you doing?" Judy asked quietly, trying not to be heard by the dozen other mammals in the theater.

"Watching a movie. You?"

Judy glared at Nick, and he smirked back at her. "Not what I meant. Don't I even get the arm over my shoulders anymore? Do bunnies have cooties now?"

Nick's smirk fell away, and he looked around nervously. "I thought…maybe…wouldn't that be a little forward? Or awkward after the restaurant? I didn't want to…you know…make you uncomfortable."

"I'm not the uncomfortable one," she noted, pointing at his clenched paws. "If you're okay with it, I am. Or…I can try putting my arm over your shoulders, but I think that might get a lot weirder looks when I sit on the armrest to reach you."

Grinning, Nick finally relaxed and put his arm over her shoulders, though she could tell he was still hesitant. From that point the rest of the movie became mere distraction for Judy. She was happy to have her fox back and found she could pay little attention to anything more than the warmth of his fur across her neck and the scent of his fur. To her great relief, once the movie was over, Nick did not ask any questions about her insistence, nor did he remove his arm until she finally started to get antsy when the credits finished.

They walked out of the theater, both clearly a little unsure how to proceed. Judy could see the internal debate on Nick's face and knew she felt much the same. Things were not quite how they were before, no matter how she tried. They both had questions about where they stood. This was getting awkward.

Judy stopped Nick on the sidewalk outside the theater before they had gone far. No sense in letting anything linger. "What's on your mind, Officer Wilde?"

"All kinds of things that won't go over well," he admitted, shrugging and turning to face her. "I had a good time, though."

"Are you going to tell me what kinds of things, or do I need to embarrass you in public?"

Nick's smirk let her know he thought she was bluffing. "Nothing a cute little bunny wants to hear. Just trying to figure out the right way to end a date that isn't a date without complicating things."

Judy looked up and down the sidewalk. No more than two dozen mammals were in sight, and none were watching them.

"I can say how we'd end it back in the burrow, but not how some sly fox in the city might," she said, rocking back and forth from toe to heel nervously. Judy wanted to one-up Nick for once, but wondered if she really had the nerve to do it.

"If it involves line dancing, I'll pass," Nick answered, grinning as he put his paws into his pockets. "I don't want to push you, Carrots. This was wonderful, though. It was good to feel like we…like it was before."

Judy nodded and let her ears fall. "You want it like it was before? No changes?"

"Don't you?"

Rising up on her toes, Judy swept her arms around Nick's neck before he could object. She pulled him down a little so she could reach him more easily and kissed him on the cheek at the edge of his mouth. Until she eased away from him, Nick did not so much as breathe.

"Not exactly like before," Judy whispered near his ear. "But if you want things to be like before, I can back off…"

Wrapping his own arms around her, Nick kissed Judy fully on the mouth, though it was awkward with their differently shaped faces. Awkward or not, Judy loved the sensation, the thrill of having him in her arms without fear or doubt.

A siren roared briefly and a spotlight illuminated them, startling Judy, though for a second longer, they held the kiss. Finally, they both brought their heads back and loosened their hug to look toward the street, where a police cruiser had stopped.

"Ma'am," called out a goat officer who Judy did not know and who likely did not know them. "Are you okay? We got calls about a fox possibly assaulting a bunny outside the theater and—"

"Assaulting?" Judy demanded, no longer afraid of confrontation. This time, the prejudice had not been merely rude, but it had actually interrupted her first real kiss with Nick. Untangling herself, Judy marched right up to the cruiser. "What is your name, officer?"

"Officer Donnie Capra," the goat said, looking between Nick and Judy, as though uncertain which was the threat. "Ma'am, is there a problem or not?"

"Well, Officer Capra, my name is Officer Judith Hopps. No problem on my end of things. Is there some reason you are treating my date as though he had committed a crime simply for standing on a sidewalk with me? If you want, I can begin quoting the regulations you're violating for claiming there's a crime without any justification."

The officer now looked seriously nervous. Judy knew it was a bit rude to use her fame in such a way, but as the only bunny cop in the city, it had some perks. Startling an officer who likely knew they were stereotyping foxes to break up something they did not approve of was a legitimate use in her mind.

"Sorry for the confusion, officer," Capra answered quickly, flicking off the light that still had been aimed at Nick. "I'll report back to the station that it was a false report."

"If I pull the logs tomorrow," Judy went on, looking in the cruiser's window when Capra sat back down, "will there be a record of any calls complaining about the fox or were you just…checking?"

"Have a good evening, Officer Hopps," Capra snapped, then put his car into gear and drove off in a rush.

"That wasn't at all awkward," said Nick, walking over slowly. "I suppose I should get you home before anyone else calls the police on us. Can't let your reputation get tarnished by being seen with me any more than you already have. I'd hate to have to tell your brother that you got hit with fox repellent as an innocent bystander."

Judy tapped her hind paw furiously, wishing the cop had stuck around so she could continue to berate him. Finally she turned to Nick and forced herself to calm down, though it took all her willpower to keep her paw from going right back to tapping.

"Now I'm absolutely wired," she admitted, looking up at the sky. It was late, but not terribly so. "I'd love to go somewhere and talk for a while, if that's okay with you. I'm angry enough that I won't be able to sleep for some time."

Nick looked up and down the street, his face furrowing. "Most of the places around here have already closed."

"My apartment has…well, it has Jack," she blurted out before really hearing herself. "Your place?"

When Judy did glance at Nick, his jaw hung slightly and he seemed at a loss for words. "I said I wanted to talk. Don't read anything else into that. You didn't want the bunny ending to a date, remember?"

Nodding but still struggling for words, Nick led her back to the van. Despite not intending anything, Judy was dearly proud of herself for finally finding a way to shut Nick up.


	31. Chapter 7-5

**The Pursuit, Chapter 7.5 – Starting Over**

 **July 16** **th** **, Saturday Late – Savanna Central**

"On second thought," Nick said, stopping in the hallway, "there could still be a coffee place open somewhere." Judy was still studying the apartment building's main hall and Nick wished he had a good way to make her stop staring at the stain on the carpet that he was certain might be vomit. Turning her attention from judging the building itself, Judy gave him a truly hurt look.

"Do you want me to go?" she asked, and the fear in her tone made Nick wish he was not so afraid of having her see his apartment, but the truth was, he was terrified.

"Just the opposite. I want you to not be scared off by this place. I feel bad even bringing you in here."

Judy seemed to understand and managed to keep a blank expression when a drunk wolverine staggered past without seeming to notice them. Once he was gone, Judy took a deep breath and returned her attention to Nick. "I can't say it's the best place I've ever been," she said, shrugging and offering a false grin. "My apartment isn't exactly home, either. I'm not big on judging these days."

Nick led her down the hall again, his dread growing with each step toward his door. "I really wasn't planning on company…"

"It'll be fine, Nick."

"The place got a little run down when Finnick still lived here, and I never quite got around to fixing it up."

"When did he move out?"

Nick stopped and thought for a moment. "Three years ago? Maybe four?"

Judy snickered but motioned for him to continue.

Taking her the rest of the way down the hall, Nick stared at the weathered door to his apartment. He had always considered the place little better than somewhere to lay his head when he was too tired to do anything else. Somehow, allowing Silvia to see the place had been minor, but allowing Judy to see the condition of his home was terrifying.

"Do we need to kick it in or do you have keys?" Judy asked, and Nick realized he had been stalling again.

"Har-har," he muttered, pulling out his keys. With a single click, he was ready to show that he was the worst host ever.

The door swung open, letting the hallway's light into the large entry room, where Nick kept his couch and television, as well as a small pile of coats that he had tossed unceremoniously to the right of the door near the window—where he had always meant to put something to hang them on. The couch itself was battered and still had a pair of his pants on it from some night that he had opted to sleep there instead of the bed. Alongside the couch was a mini-fridge and a microwave that he used when watching television and did not want to wander all the way to the kitchen. Thankfully the light from the entry room did not extend to the hall that led to the kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom, which he knew were in even worse shape.

"It's…not…awful," Judy said slowly, leaning into the apartment, her ears turning as she studied each item in the room carefully. "Let's go with 'lived in.' Fresh coat of paint and it might be…better?"

"You don't need to spare me. I know how it looks," Nick replied, leading the way inside so he could turn on lights and grab the pants off the couch, which he threw down the hall into the bedroom. "Eternal bachelor and it shows."

Judy closed the door behind her and kept adjusting in place to look over the whole of the room, as though afraid of stepping on or in something. The whole time, she kept her paws folded carefully in front of her.

"Nothing in here will bite since Finnick moved out, I promise," Nick told her. "You don't have to stay in the doorway."

Smiling a little cockeyed, Judy took a few small steps into the room. "It's not actually awful, if you cleaned it up. My whole apartment would fit in this room. I think your couch would almost fill my apartment. What's down the hall?"

"Bedroom and bathroom. Oh, and a kitchen that used to be Finnick's bedroom. Nothing exciting."

"You realize I share a bathroom with fifteen other mammals on my floor, right? We don't have a kitchen in the whole building," Judy reminded him, finally relaxing and walking to the center of the room, then wandered to the window on the east wall. "Not a great view, but no worse than mine."

"I bet you don't have to worry about fistfights in your building."

Judy kept her eyes on the dark street outside the window. "You would be surprised. Bucky and Pronk usually break those up. They argue more than anyone, but have no patience for things getting physical."

Nick frowned at that. He had always thought—and hoped—Judy's place was far safer than his own. He started to speak, but forgot what he meant to say when he saw a pair of underwear sticking out from under the couch. Kicking it underneath with his toe, he straightened up when Judy turned back to face him.

"So what do you do for fun?" she asked, skipping past him to flop on the couch. Judy shifted up to put her head on one arm of the sofa, leaving the majority of the cushions for him to sit, despite her reclining with her paws up. Nick was willing to be he could fit about eight or ten bunnies on that couch if they were willing to cuddle.

"Nothing here, that's for sure," Nick admitted, sitting down at the other end. "Sleep mostly. I actually prefer to be out causing trouble."

"Shocked. Absolutely shocked."

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered back at her, getting a big grin in response. "Lately, work keeps me going most of the time…other than when…"

"Silvia. I know. You don't need to keep looking guilty when she comes up."

"I kind of do, Carrots. She almost ruined our friendship, and she wasn't exactly good for me. I'm fairly certain my mother almost disowned me when she found out. I hate what Silvia did to us…to you. I was stupid, and I know it's going to take a lot of work to make up for that."

Judy looked thoughtful for a moment, her eyes drifting over the water stains on the ceiling. "Why do you act like I'll be mad at you when she's mentioned?"

"She did try to hurt you and she turned out to be a criminal."

Tilting her head to look down the length of the couch at him, Judy adjusted the flower tucked under her ear and replied, "She did those things. You didn't. When you found out, you distanced yourself from her. You never did anything wrong, except…no, you didn't do anything wrong."

"Except?" Nick sat up straight as Judy's ears turned bright red and her nose began twitching. "What'd I do wrong?"

"I…yeah, I don't remember. Must have been nothing."

Scowling at her, Nick shifted a little closer on the couch. "Spill it, Carrots. You're a terrible liar."

"Nope. Not happening."

Nick reached over and caught one of Judy's hind paws, making her eyes go wide in surprise. "You let me give you a paw massage a while back. I do know where you're ticklish."

"You wouldn't." The fear in her eyes told him that he had some leverage.

"I don't _want_ to," he lied, brushing a claw across the inner edge of her paw, just a little behind the ticklish spot at the base of her toes. Judy's nose twitched frantically as she struggled to keep from jumping. "I will, though. Tell me what I did wrong."

"It's stupid, Nick. Just let it go."

Nick turned his paw and brushed the pad of his finger behind Judy's toes, and she clamped her eyes shut, her whole body rigid as she tried to ignore the ticklishness there. Given how red her nose and ears were, he wondered if she was holding her breath. "Last chance."

"Noooooo!" she pleaded, trying to swat away his paw.

Nick held on tightly so Judy could not escape, though he worried she would simply kick him. Thankfully she squirmed but did not kick, or he could well have been on his way back to the emergency room, as the side facing her was where he had been shot.

"Okay, okay!" Judy finally relented when he touched her paw again. "I just mean that I think you made a little tiny mistake by trying to scare me off in the burrow. It made me think you didn't want to be close…like paw-rubs close. Been trying to figure out what you do want since then, and mostly failing."

Nick froze and stared at her in confusion, his mind racing over every conversation in Bunnyburrow. "Scare you off? I'm really certain I didn't try to do that."

Her muzzle wrinkling in misery, Judy avoided looking at him. "I don't think it was on purpose. I may have been a little forward, and you…"

"I told you no," he finished, nodding in recognition of where she was going with the conversation. "Trust me, that wasn't for lack of wanting. The last thing I intended was to scare you off. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm terrible at communicating what I really mean."

"Then why?"

Nick could not believe he was letting her lead him into this conversation, knowing how easily either of them could upset the other by saying the wrong thing. Idly he began rubbing Judy's paws without thinking about it, and she relaxed back onto the couch's arm.

"I was scared," he admitted, thinking over those moments weeks before, while continuing to work the stress out of Judy's paws. Nick barely even noticed her purring faintly. "You had told me about how you didn't want to be with anyone. I even scared off interested bucks for you. I definitely didn't want to be another annoying mammal who you needed to chase off. I like you too much for that. I know my reputation for ruining relationships. The idea of us turning into another failed relationship was terrifying. Being friends was safer."

Her eyes almost closed, Judy asked softly, "You said at the time that you were afraid of hurting me."

"Absolutely. Hurting us, really. I didn't want to hurt our friendship…though I managed to anyway. I didn't want to hurt your feelings by getting clingy, which I know I would if we had gone any further. It's just who I am. Also, I didn't want to risk actually physically hurting you."

"Clingy I could deal with. I also know you wouldn't ever hurt me," Judy insisted, then bit her lip when his fingers hit a tender spot on her paw. When he moved to her other paw, she continued. "I know you well enough by now. I got over that fear of you attacking me. If I don't have nightmares about you trying to bite me in the museum, there's not much you can do to frighten me. Cutting off contact with me hurt more than anything you could have said in the burrow."

Nick smiled and leaned back, trying to convince himself to shut up and rub her paws until she moved on to a different topic or fell asleep, but he felt like he no longer had control over his mouth. He had thought on the things he should have said for so long that now that he had gotten going, there was no way to stop. "Sure, I was scared of hurting you emotionally if things didn't work out, but I don't mean just like that, Judy. I mean _really_ hurt you. I've never been with a bunny—just foxes—and it wasn't like we were thinking clearly. I could make a mistake, get carried away, you know…something like that, especially when we'd both been drinking. You're a lot smaller than I am, and I don't know… If I did anything that really hurt you, I'd never forgive myself. It was easier to say no and clean up the emotional mess afterward."

"I do understand," she admitted, sitting up, but not taking her paws away. "I've only been with bunnies. Trust me, the concern has crossed my mind. Is that the reason, though? That's why you pushed me away? Nothing else?"

"No, nothing beyond fear of hurting someone I care about." Nick tried not to look her in the eyes. He felt absolutely terrified of where this conversation was going, imagining her realizing how he truly felt and walking out. Judy was one of the strongest mammals he had ever met, and talking as though she were fragile was likely not going to win him any favor. "That's why I came by with the flowers originally. I was going to see if you were willing to try and be more than friends, knowing there was a chance we might never get…physical. The confusion over Jack hit me a lot harder than it should have, which probably says something about how nervous I was going into that."

Judy slid her paws away from his fingers and folded her legs under her, her ears up and on high alert as she scooted a little closer. "What did you have in mind?"

"I don't know. Casual dating or something? I guess putting new words on what we were already doing with the movie nights. I hadn't really gotten that far. You're my best friend and it makes me miserable every time you leave, knowing that I never said how I feel about you."

"And how do you feel?"

Nick scowled as he realized she was forcing him to admit to everything, while offering nothing in return. That was seriously bad form for a hustler to be giving up every bit of information without getting something back. "What about you, Carrots? Back in the burrow…just got carried away? No fears at all? What were you thinking?"

"Of course I was afraid," she answered immediately, cocking her head a little. "I was afraid of scaring you off, but that was all. I'm not so scared now. What I was thinking was that I trust you more than anyone I've ever been with. I don't take choices like those lightly, even if you thought I was just worked up and not thinking clearly. And yes, I got carried away. That's not really a bad thing, I think. We've seen how lying to each other worked out. Being bluntly forward seems a lot more sensible now. I'm glad we finally sat down and talked this out."

"Are you actually saying if we'd had sex that night, it wouldn't have changed things between us?"

Judy furrowed her brow and shrugged. "Okay, let's get something straight. I have nearly three hundred siblings and nearly that many nieces and nephews. Sex is a little too common among bunnies for me to be afraid of it, even if I am the weird bunny who's single. You always told me that bunnies are too emotional, but that's what matters when it comes to our feelings, not whether we had sex. Would making a mistake have caused things to change? Probably. I don't know if that would have been good or bad. We'll never know in hindsight. Are you going to tell me how you feel or do I have to start playing twenty questions to guess?"

"Are you sure you really want to know?" Nick asked, feeling as though his stomach were trying to escape as it twisted painfully. For a moment, he wondered if he was going to be sick before he could say anything more. That would be his luck—vomiting on Judy out of fear.

"Absolutely. You tell me, and I'll tell you my thoughts. I promise. No more secrets."

"You're the only person I ever couldn't imagine leaving my life," he blurted out, regretting the overly emotional statement instantly. If Nick thought he had been pushing his luck before, this was going well past that line. "I guess what I mean is…I lo…okay, I can't say this. Maybe I should take you home before I embarrass us both. Three stupid words and I can't even manage to say them."

Judy slid across the couch when Nick tried to stand up, pushing him back down. Cautiously she eased herself onto his lap, one leg on either side of his hips, straddling him.

Nick was too shocked to be able to react and found himself frozen, his arms out to his sides as though trying to deny he had been part of the movement, and he was willing to bet that his face screamed "guilty." His ears felt like they were burning, and he could not figure out what to do, other than stare at Judy nervously.

Putting her nose to his so he could not help but smell the sweet scent of her, Judy sounded as nervous as Nick felt. "If you won't say it first, I will. I love you, Nick. Call me an emotional bunny if you want, but it's how I feel. If that's not how you feel…let me know so I can go home before I humiliate myself more."

"I love you too," he whispered back, the fear gone as he brushed her muzzle with his whiskers. Even if nothing else happened, he could not imagine a moment more sensual than this. Thinking over his past, Nick could not remember ever having said that to anyone but his mother before, yet it felt natural when it slipped out. "This is begging for me to break the 'just friends' rule, Judy. If we want to keep this…safe…we need to stop right now. You on my lap is a recipe for bad decisions. I can barely touch you without feeling like I'm putting us at risk."

"Stop being so dramatic. There's no alcohol this time," Judy replied, tracing a tiny claw across Nick's fur at the collar of his shirt. "I've got nowhere to be, and I think it's time we cashed in a raincheck from the last time we let this pass without acting on it. Just say the word and I'll go home. Our friendship is more important than this, but I think we're both adults and would really love to—"

Without thinking, Nick kissed her, clutching the back of her head to hold her close. He had only meant to shut her up so she did not ruin the tender moment, but she reacted immediately, grinding her hips against his as she began unbuttoning his shirt. She had it entirely unbuttoned before he was done kissing her and he found himself in a mad scramble to catch up by unbuttoning hers. She ran her fingers through his chest fur, carefully avoiding the patch of bandages that covered the still-healing wound there.

Nick slid Judy's shirt off and she pressed herself against him, initially licking at the base of his ear, making him shiver all the way down to the tip of his tail. To his surprise she then moved down his neck, nipping gently with her teeth. That had been about the last thing Nick would have expected from a bunny.

"Bedroom?" he managed to gasp, trying to keep some semblance of coherence, despite Judy's fingers near his belt.

"Mrm-hrm," Judy answered, digging her claws into his fur behind his shoulder. She wrapped both legs and arms around him, clinging to make it easier for him to lift her, even as she rubbed her chin on his collar.

Despite his chest still hurting, Nick was able to pick Judy up easily and carry her through the apartment to the bedroom. If she noticed the mess in that room, she did not give any indication, and he swept some dirty clothing off the bed, before easing her down onto her back.

"You sure about this?" Nick asked, as Judy lay back to look him in the eyes.

"Stop trying to get me to change my mind," she answered coyly, laying back with her arms over her head. "Unless you changed yours…"

That was all the cue Nick needed. Tossing aside his shirt, he fumbled with Judy's pants, trying to get his fingers on the smaller zipper—with no luck, thanks largely to his shaking paws. She soon helped him, pulling off both pants and panties, as he tore his own slacks and underwear off.

Climbing onto the bed, Nick hesitated over her, really unsure how to proceed. The fear of hurting Judy was still lingering in his mind, and seeing them both naked only made it come to the forefront, no matter how much he wanted her.

"You're _not_ having that argument with yourself," Judy insisted, shoving Nick down onto the bed and rolling him onto his back. Slowly, she climbed atop him, straddling his stomach. "I'll stop you if there's a problem, okay? Put your trust in me."

"Okay," he managed to whisper. He could not take his eyes off the gray and white patterns of her fur and the bare patch of skin on her hip where the bullet graze was still healing. Every part of her was mesmerizing, from the flower still tucked behind her ear, to the way her gray and white fur blended together at spots. She seemed to be entirely unable to lower her ears, giving him a sense of how tense she was too.

Easing back, Judy reached down and stroked him, making him moan. After a moment, she guided him into her, just an inch at first.

The sensation of having her around him made Nick gasp with pleasure, wanting to push forward, but knowing he had to be careful. His instincts were to reach for her hips, but he knew that was far too risky at this point and instead brought his paws behind her shoulders, pulling her forward to lay atop him so he could breathe her in and nuzzle at her ears, knocking aside the flower that had still be nestled at the base of one ear.

Judy pushed down a little farther onto him, and Nick thought he was going to lose his mind. The few vixens he had been with had always been forceful and demanding, but this was so different. He felt as though they were working together, exploring one another, rather than taking what they wanted. It was something he had never realized he wanted, but now that it was there, he could not imagine going without it.

Another inch or so and Judy winced a little, catching Nick's attention instantly. She tried to hide the tiny flinch, but Nick froze, unable to even find the breath to ask as he looked around nervously.

"We're good. Don't look at me like that," Judy warned, putting a finger to his nose before he could speak up. "That's about as far as we can go for now. You still good?"

"Almost too good," Nick admitted, breathing shallowly. "I might be a bit overeager. Sorry in advance."

Judy grinned back at him. "I can work with that. And stop apologizing!" Sitting up atop him, Judy began rising and falling, driving the pace of their lovemaking.

Nick struggled for what he could safely do and finally threw caution to the wind and grasped her hips, his fingers resting on her tail. Each thrust, he could tell he was holding tighter, but Judy did not object and he fought to keep himself under control. The excitement was simply too much for restraint.

Knowing he was about to climax, Nick tried to pull away, realizing they had taken no precautions, but Judy locked her legs under his hips. Groaning, he pulled her to him and held her tightly as his body and hers heaved and trembled.

"You trying to get away from me at the end there?" Judy asked breathlessly a minute later, turning her head to look up at him as she lay on his stomach and chest, smirking.

"Sort of," he admitted, laughing despite himself. "Blood-starved brain worried about a few dozen kits briefly before I realized that's not so much a concern…and I figured you didn't want to do the whole knotting thing."

Judy sat up and stared at him in confusion, her ears slowly rising again.

Shifting a little, Nick found that he could move freely in—and more importantly, out of—her.

"Never mind, then," he added, relaxing. "Fox and wolf thing. We didn't quite get deep enough for that to be a problem. Think of it as mandatory postsex cuddle time. Besides, aren't you the one who had speciesology classes?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing. Maybe we'll work up to that. Gives us a goal. Classes don't really cover interspecies sex, dummy."

Nick smiled and pulled her tight to him. For once, it actually did not sound bad, despite it always having been something he dreaded in the past. Nuzzling her cheek, Nick could not even put words to how happy he was.

"I probably should ask," Judy said after a few minutes, her fingers tracing across his chest. "Am I allowed to stay or should I go home?"

Nick laughed and licked the top of Judy's head. "Please stay. No one likes a fox begging, and I would if you tried to leave. Complete meltdown, dragged behind your leg and everything. I can act like a four year old at will, trust me."

He could feel her large smile through his fur, as she rubbed her cheek on the middle of his chest.

A short time later, Judy slid off Nick and rolled onto her side, pulling up the sheets over them and adjusting the pillow so they both could reach it. Wiggling to get comfortable, she flattened out her back against his chest as he put his arms around her to rest, her tail pressed against his waist.

"Maybe we should find a different position," she said a moment later, turning to smirk at him. "I remember having my tail around there caused some distress back in the burrow. Can't have you always worked up."

Nick laughed and nipped playfully at Judy's ear, and he felt her tremble a little at the touch. In hindsight he remembered the one time he had touched her ear, she had acted as though it were ticklish or enticing—that was something to file away for mischief later. Anything that got a reaction was worth checking out.

"I think it was more having you rubbing up against me," Nick admitted, burrowing his chin into the fur of her shoulder. "Don't get me wrong. I love tails and am a bit extra fascinated by bunny tails, but I'm more of an ear-and-paw man, myself."

Judy looked over at him and giggled. "Are we seriously talking about our fetishes, Nick?"

"I guess so. Your turn?"

Laughing more openly, Judy answered, "Ears and hind paws… However did you end up with a bunny? Clearly a coincidence. Not that we have big ears or large paws…"

"You're avoiding the question, Carrots."

"Yes. Absolutely," she admitted, fidgeting in his arms. "This is a little embarrassing."

"You just had sex with a fox that your father tased and discussed said fox's ear and paw fetish. I'm doubting anything you say is going to get weirder than things already are. You'd have to try really hard to beat that."

"True." Judy grumbled a little, obviously stalling for time. "Promise not to laugh?"

"No. You hate it when I lie."

Judy lined up her elbow to jab him, but thankfully she stopped before poking his bullet wound.

"Whiskers and tails," she finally confessed, curling up a little tighter. "Our tails are small and dainty. Other breeds' tails are fun to watch. I like the way other mammals' tails swish all over and let me know what they're thinking. I can usually tell when you're daydreaming, angry, or planning mischief just by watching your tail. Your face doesn't usually let me know until it's too late, especially when you're trying to hide it."

"You do know your ears do the same thing, right?"

"Yeah, I know, Nick. It's not the same. Ears aren't…well…"

"Positioned so you can stare at my finely-toned butt?"

Judy lost herself in a fit of giggling and turned partway to halfheartedly glower at him. "Okay, yes."

Adjusting himself, Nick swept his tail over his hip and across Judy. She flinched a little and eyed it skeptically. "You know you want to touch it."

"Not the point," she insisted, though she watched his tail intently, as if ready to pounce. "I know it's really sensitive, and I don't want to be a bother. I still feel bad about stepping on it the one time."

"Okay, let's get something straight here." Nick kept his tail where it was and moved so he was whispering right into Judy's ear, making a special point of breathing a bit more with each word to see if that tickled her too. "You can touch anything you want. And as for sensitive…you know how you get with paw rubs?"

"The melting and wanting to cuddle and occasionally babbling incoherently?"

"We're kind of the same with our tails."

Gingerly Judy pulled his tail into a hug, nuzzling it with her nose. Nick could not help but laugh a little at her, but being able to be hugged by her while hugging her was both comforting and adorable.

"See?" he said, holding her a little tighter. "Nothing scary about that."

"Nope," she answered, her voice a little muffled by his tail fur. As far as he could tell, she had it clutched like a body pillow and was rubbing her chin on it gleefully.

"No different than your plush fox on your bed at home." Judy froze, and Nick could easily imagine the wide-eyed stare, though sadly he could only see the back of her head. "Right?"

"I don't wanna talk about it, Nick."

"Where'd that thing come from, anyway?"

Sighing, Judy squeezed his tail a little tighter. "Wolford was making fun of me while I was still on crutches after the whole Bellwether incident and told me that I should have you come kiss my leg to make it better. I might have overdone the objections, because the next day he dropped off that stuffed animal and said it would have to do until you came around. I thought he meant until you came back to the hospital, but I think he meant until you came around to how you or I felt."

Nick laughed at that, especially given how uncomfortable discussing it made Judy. "Was it good enough to tide you over?"

"It let me sleep a little easier," she admitted. "Definitely not the same as the real thing, though it didn't run away when I was feeling clingy. Wasn't sure how you'd react to seeing your stuffed proxy in my bed when we hadn't even discussed us."

That made Nick wonder a little, and he eased himself up onto one elbow so he could look down at Judy's face. "Is there an 'us'? I mean…is this just one time…?"

Rolling part-way, Judy stared up at him as though he were an idiot. "I meant what I said. I love you. I'm here for as long as you'll have me, if you feel the same. If you don't—"

Nick quickly kissed her before she could finish that thought. He kept their muzzles together until he felt Judy fully relax into his arms again, and then finally closed his eyes and put his forehead to hers as he ended the kiss. "I suppose I can let you stick around. So long as you aren't crimping my style, that is."

"Dumb fox," Judy muttered, releasing his tail and flipping over to face him. She dug her claws into his fur and nuzzled her face under his chin. "At least you're my dumb fox."

Nick stroked at Judy's ears, smoothing them down her back. "Can you stay? I don't mean in general—I mean, tonight. All night. No running home, no matter how late it gets."

"Tonight and any other night," she answered, her breath warming his neck fur. "Okay, maybe not work nights. We'll see. I get a little obsessive about work."

"What about Jack? Won't he tell on you?"

Nick felt Judy's eyes go wide and her ears shot up, smacking him in the nose.

"He can deal with it this time," Judy answered slowly, though Nick could feel the tension in her back through his fingers. "I'll talk to him tomorrow and we'll…figure something out."

"Not ready to tell the parents yet?"

Judy growled and thumped her forehead against his collarbone. "Soon. I promise. I need to feel safe with us first, and then I can deal with them. One week, maybe two. They might have a good idea after the hospital, but I'll have to spell it out for them. My father probably still maintains a list of eligible bucks in the burrow."

"Do you mind if I talk with my mother in the meantime?" he asked and was a little surprised at the depth of emotion he saw in Judy's eyes as she shifted to look at him. "Did I say something wrong?"

"Nothing at all," she assured him, hugging him tightly. "I know what she means to you. It just tells me you're pretty serious about this. About us."

"Never been more serious about anything, Fluff."


	32. Chapter 8-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 8.1 – Challenge**

 **July 17** **th** **, Sunday – Savanna Central**

Judy woke slowly, the scents of Nick's apartment and their fevered lovemaking mingling to remind her where she was even before she opened her eyes. Her arms were still around his tail after their second bout as the sun had been rising and the aches of her body let her know that not too much time had passed since then. Making love to a fox had proven…difficult, especially after awkwardly trying to let him be on top…but she was glad they were trying and thrilled it was not a one-time decision.

Looking around the room in what dim sunlight made it through Nick's dingy curtains, Judy realized how sparse the place was. She could not imagine how Nick had lived there for years and had little more than the bed and a chest of drawers in the whole room. Not that she had more at her place, but she had always considered her apartment extremely temporary. Nick's place felt as though he had the same feeling, but had never moved past that, no matter how long he had been out on his own.

Judy smiled as she realized she was already trying to mentally rearrange the apartment. There was no sense in rushing things. It had always been her way to plan for anything and everything. Now, that meant her mind was racing to include Nick in those plans. She did not want to change him; she wanted him to be a part of her daily life and forethought.

A faint snore near her ear let Judy know that Nick had yet to wake up. Smirking devilishly, she decided to wake him pleasantly, knowing how much he hated mornings. She pressed herself up against his naked body, confirming her tail was over his groin before she starting wiggling to get his attention. It only took a moment before he started to stir in more ways than one.

Nick's arms tightened around Judy, and she turned to kiss his muzzle—as the ringing of a cell phone echoed through the apartment. They both froze and stared at each other, the second ring seeming louder than the first.

"That's…mine," Judy murmured, wishing she had thought to turn it off the night before, though it had been far from her mind. She already guessed who was calling. "My brother probably wants to know why I didn't come home. I suppose I should at least tell him that I'm alive."

Nick chuckled and licked her forehead, distracting her from the phone briefly. When it rang again, she decided to let it go to voice mail and call Jack back shortly.

"I'm a bad influence," Nick whispered, his breath on her ears making her want to stay where she was all day. If he had stroked her ears, she was not certain she could have convinced herself to get up. "You should call him back."

Judy sighed and clung a moment longer, but she knew he was right. The longer that she waited, the more likely someone would do something stupid, like call her parents or Bogo. Neither was ideal at this point, especially with extra patrols on watch around their apartments for trouble from the case they were working on. The last thing she needed was McHorn kicking in the door. Reluctantly she untangled herself and slid out of the bed and onto her paws in the cold room. Nick was going to need to get some rugs, given how cold the floor was.

"Just stay right there a moment," Nick told her, humor in his voice.

Judy paused, thinking briefly that he was admiring how she looked standing naked beside the bed…then recognized the sly tone. "If you have your cell phone out to take a picture, I will hurt you, Nick."

When he did not reply, Judy glanced over her shoulder and found he did indeed have his phone out, but he appeared to have forgotten her entirely. He was staring at the screen with a panicked expression.

"What's wrong?" Judy asked, grabbing one of Nick's shirts off the floor and pulling it on as she slid back onto the bed beside him. When he still did not answer, she leaned close to look at the screen.

The phone had a single text message on it, which listed its source as "Mom" though Judy could not imagine Nick's mother saying the words.

 _This is a big game you seem to want to play, fox. Your ante. See you soon._

"I have no idea what that's about," Nick admitted, though she could hear the fear in his voice. "I'll go over to her place right away. Could be nothing. Maybe she lost her cellphone."

Judy touched Nick's shoulder and kissed his cheek. Getting back off the bed, she hunted around the room until she found her pants. Digging through the pockets, she pulled out her own phone and saw it had been her brother who called. Sighing, she put the phone to her ear and waited for the voice mail to play back.

"Judy," Jack said a moment later. "There's a ZPD officer here who says I need to come down to the station to answer questions about you. What's going on? You didn't come home and…yeah, I'm coming…anyway, he says to get to the station right away—"

Faintly Judy heard the phone get yanked away, and a second later, the voice mail ended. She lowered the phone from her ear, staring at it in confusion. She hit redial, but almost immediately heard her home phone's voice mail, as though the handset was off the hook.

"I think my brother just got brought in for questioning," she mumbled. Nick's ears shot up in surprise, but he kept silent. "Go check on your mother. I'll find out what's going on and let you know."

Shaking her head, Judy grabbed her pants and went to the front room, where she had to do some hunting to locate her shirt. To her surprise it had gotten tossed nearly behind the microwave, along with some of Nick's old clothing. A few seconds of frantic dressing later, she felt at least willing to show her face outside the apartment, even if she dreaded going anywhere without a shower. That would have to wait.

Judy hurried back into the bedroom and found Nick was halfway dressed, though he was still staring at his phone. "It'll be fine," she assured him, tugging at his arm until he leaned so she could kiss him again. Out of a sense of mothering the dumb fox, Judy eyed his bandages on his chest and back, finding blood had soaked through them again. "When we get back, we'll get those changed." He did not so much as look up. "Nick? Can you hear me?"

Blinking hard, Nick nodded and kissed her back. "Sorry. Mom's one of only two people I worry about. Just has me a bit rattled. I'll call you when I get there."

"I know," Judy answered, nuzzling his cheek. "I love you. Talk later."

Nick's ears shot up a little and he took a moment to relax. "That's still going to take some getting used to. I…wow, yeah that's still hard…I love you, Fluff…Judy…you."

Judy laughed in spite of herself, shaking her head. "You act like you've never said those words."

"To be honest, I haven't," Nick admitted, kissing her head between her ears again. "Unless you count my mom. Not quite the same."

"We'll work on that. See you later, Nick."

Making her way out of the apartment, Judy hurried toward the nearest subway. She barely made it aboard as the doors were closing, then rushed to grab one of the bars to keep her balance as the train took off. In under twenty minutes she would be at the precinct and could figure out why they had taken Jack in. Once that was taken care of, she would try to convince Nick to let her know where he was so she could join him. All in all, it was going to be a long day, especially after very little sleep. Taking the moment she had to rest, Judy closed her eyes as the subway car raced through Zootopia.

"Do you smell that?" whispered someone near her, and Judy found her ears turning to listen. Wolves sat off to her left. "That…oh my. She's couldn't have… Is that legal?"

Judy's eyes popped open, and from the corner of her vision, she saw the two wolves were staring at her.

 _Of course they are_ , she thought, clenching her eyes shut again _. Wolves and their noses. Pleeease let them just leave me alone. Sweet cheese and crackers, I'm too tired to argue or explain why I smell like day-old clothes and sex with a fox, especially to a stranger._

Thankfully the rest of the subway ride was uneventful, aside from the wolves moving a little farther from Judy. Soon thereafter, she reached her destination and hurried off the car before anyone could approach her.

She rushed through the streets and ran up the steps into the precinct, barely taking notice of the officers manning the front desk. She had never worked more than intermittently on weekends and she barely knew any of the mammals on duty. Though they seemed to recognize her even out of uniform, because they allowed her to head upstairs and around the second floor to Bogo's office.

She had not even thought about him being out for the day if her brother had been brought in for questioning, but the office door was locked and Judy ended up hanging off the handle a moment before dropping to the floor to wonder who she should be hunting down. Deciding to check with the front desk, she hopped down the stairs and ran over to the lion who manned Clawhauser's desk.

"Excuse me!" Judy chimed up, jumping a little so she was seen. "I got a call that my brother was brought in a little while ago for questioning about a case I'm working on. Can you tell me where he might be?"

The lioness leaned over the edge of the desk and stared at Judy a moment, as though trying to remember her name. "Officer Hopps? I…" Sniffing, the lioness cocked her head and stared at Judy as though she had caught fire. "I…um…okay… What's your brother's name?"

"Jack Hopps." Judy tried to ignore the ongoing questioning stare. Apparently, she was standing close enough that the lion could smell the same things the wolves on the train could. That was going to be a problem if she started spreading that information around the precinct. Sooner or later Judy would need to escape to the locker room and make an attempt at hiding any lingering scents.

Nodding, the lioness sat and paged through the logs for the day, then shook her head after a few seconds. "No. No Hopps brought in today for questioning or arrested. I do show the logs that your apartment is under watch, though. Do you want me to check with the officer on watch?"

"Please," Judy answered quickly, suddenly feeling nervous. She pulled out her phone and redialed her apartment, but it again went to voice mail.

"Officer Rhinowitz," the lioness said into the mic on her desk. After a moment, Judy saw her brows furrow a little. "Rhinowitz, please reply. Report in."

Judy's paw began tapping slowly, but after a few more seconds of waiting, it beat the floor furiously. "What's going on?"

The lioness shook her head. "I have no idea. He reported in less than an hour ago. He's not due for another twenty minutes on his next round. I'll have another squad car check the area…"

Judy felt sick to her stomach and could not keep from glancing at her phone repeatedly as she listened to the call go out for a second patrol to look for Officer Rhinowitz. She soon began pacing around the lobby, unsure if she should go to her apartment herself or wait. At last the lioness called her back over.

"Officer," she said, putting down the desk phone. "We just got word that they found Rhinowitz. He's been attacked and his radio and uniform taken, but he is okay. A squad car is coming around front to get you to your apartment. We don't have all the information yet, but detectives will meet you there."

"My brother?" Judy asked, her whole body going cold.

"We don't have eyes on him yet. They should by the time you arrive."

Numbly Judy stumbled out of the precinct to the waiting squad car. She barely was aware of who was in the car with her. All she could do was stare at her phone as they raced through the city, siren blaring the whole way.

When the car lurched to a stop, Judy looked around to find that her apartment was basically a crime scene. Four police cars were on the street out front, blocking any traffic—vehicle or pedestrian—from approaching. Seated on the entry steps of the building, Officer Rhinowitz was wearing little more than an undershirt and shorts, and EMTs were still around him, examining a deep wound to his head.

"What happened?" Judy yelled, running to the rhino, trying to make herself heard above the many mammals talking. "Where's my brother?"

Rhinowitz shook his head and shoved aside the deer who had been trying to apply pressure to the wound. "He's gone, Judy. Seconds after my last report, someone jumped me. Took almost an hour to break out of the chains I woke up in. When I got upstairs, he was missing. Go on up. The detectives have already looked around."

Judy patted the other officer's shoulder as she ran up the steps and into the building. Everywhere she looked, mammals from the other apartments were in the hall, being kept out of the way by officers. Many called out to Judy in passing, but she kept going, not yet ready to even attempt to explain what was going on when she did not know for herself.

Racing up the stairs, she soon reached her apartment. Outside it, Pronk and Bucky gave her worried looks but did not try to call her over. At first glance, aside from a beaver detective and two wolf officers inside, her apartment looked entirely normal. They allowed her to pass, stepping back out into the hall to give her a moment to herself.

Judy frantically searched the room for any hint of what had happened, but everything looked like she had left it. Her bed was made and appeared as though Jack might have sat on it once or twice. The desk was a mess of small items, including Jack's laptop. The floor still had Jack's sleeping bag and pillow, though they had been slid over near the wall to give him room to move around. The only hints that something was wrong were the small container of microwave carrots that sat on the desk, uneaten, and the room's phone sitting on the windowsill, off its cradle.

Slowly Judy padded into the middle of the room. She stopped near the edge of her bed and turned in place to take in every detail. Her eyes drifted from one thing to the next and back again, trying to find any possible clue. After her third full turn around the room, her attention went to the fox plush sitting on her bed, atop her pillow. She had left it alongside the pillow, and she could not imagine Jack would have moved it there.

"Officers," Judy called out, moving to the bed. Cautiously, she knelt on the bed, eyeing the fox doll as the two wolves and beaver came into the room. She had to concentrate to ignore the wolves sniff, chuckle, and make several obscene gestures as they got close to her.

Lifting the fox plush, Judy at first thought she might have been wrong, but then she glanced at the doll's mouth. A folded note had been stuffed into its jaws. With trembling fingers, she pulled the note free and unfolded it.

With the beaver detective looking over her shoulder, Judy read the note aloud. "Three taken from me. Now one from each of you. Your move, officers."

The note fell from Judy's fingers as the full realization of what was happening sunk in.

"Nick!" she gasped, scrambling off the bed and running for the door.


	33. Chapter 8-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 8.2 – Challenge**

 **July 17** **th** **, Sunday – Vulpine Estates Independent Living**

Nick hurried up the steps of the building and ran to the front desk. He could barely breathe by the time he got there, his healing lung aching and feeling as though he was going to be coughing up more blood soon. But medical care could wait until he was certain everything was all right with his mother. After so many visits recently, the hospital probably still had a room reserved for him.

"I need to see Missus Wilde," Nick insisted as he reached the desk, clutching his side as he tried to catch his breath.

"Sir," the older fox at the desk said, rolling his eyes. "I can't just let anyone go where they want—"

"She's my mother," Nick snapped, no longer even caring about his deception. "Either buzz me in or I'll kick down the door."

The other fox eyed him warily and slide a paw toward the phone.

"Fine," Nick growled, slamming his badge on the desk. "Officer Nicholas Wilde. I want to see my mother. Now."

The other mammal sighed, nodded, and came around the desk to lead Nick to the elevator, which required an employee or resident card to access. Nick tapped his paw impatiently as they waited for the elevator to arrive.

"Crazy day, this one," the other fox said offhandedly, shaking his head.

Nick's paw-tapping stopped abruptly. "What do you mean? What happened here?"

"Nothing too drastic," admitted the employee. "Just had a fire alarm go off about two hours ago. False alarm, but the whole building got cleared. We are still trying to get everyone settled back in."

At last the elevator arrived, and Nick fidgeted until they reached his mother's floor. When the doors opened, he pushed past the employee and ran down the hall to her room, then frantically knocked at her door. There was no answer.

"Open it!" Nick demanded as the other fox came up beside him.

"Sir, we don't intrude without a medical reason or a warrant…"

Growling, Nick kicked the door open, breaking one of the hinges in the process. His leg felt unsteady as he walked into the room, but that was low on his list of concerns.

He limped past the couch and into the kitchen and then the bedroom, searching for his mother. He could smell her, as well as a second mammal he did not recognize. He could not even be entirely certain of the species, but the scent made his hackles raise instinctively, as though the more primal portions of his mind wanted him to run or prepare for a fight.

"Sir…" The fox behind him pleaded, but Nick ignored him.

Hurrying into the last few rooms, Nick angrily swept a decorative table onto its side, raking it with his claws. Snarling, he kicked the table as soon as it landed, numbing his already aching paw.

"Sir!"

Nick went back into the entry room, casting his gaze across the furniture until it came to rest on a cellphone and piece of paper sitting on a small table near the door. Neither had been there during his last visit, nor was the phone style anything like the one his mother had used.

"Get out," Nick warned the employee, who rushed out, likely to talk to the ZPD about his behavior. He waited where he was until the other fox was gone and then went to the table, eyeing the phone skeptically.

Taking the note from under the phone, Nick found it contained just a phone number, and not a local one. He did not recognize the prefix, which could have been almost anywhere on the continent.

Nick stood where he was awhile, debating whether to use the phone on the table or his own. Finally he decided to play along with whoever was doing this and dialed the listed number on the phone, then lifted it to his ear.

"Hello?" came a deep voice a moment later, answering on the second ring. "Do I have the pleasure of speaking with Nicholas Wilde?"

"You do," Nick answered, clenching his free paw in anger, but doing his best to hide his feelings from his voice. Years of hustling were the only thing keeping him sounding calm. "Who is this?"

"Before we go any further, please tell me how many officers are responding to your location. I believe your partner has had them dispatched already."

"Where is my mother?"

The mammal on the other end chuckled. "You have no room to negotiate, Wilde. I can simply hang up and you will never see her again. Play the game."

Snarling, Nick went to the window and looked out. He could see several police cruisers pulling into the street below. "Five."

"Excellent. Five at the condo, and six remaining at Hopps' apartment. This city is truly predictable. Not a single mammal available for backup at the Meadowlands hospital."

Nick pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it a moment. "Meadowlands? Why would you be there?"

"Don't act so surprised" came the reply. "You took three of mine. I am taking three from you. Silvia surely told you I would find her. I will send another message within a day or two. Keep this phone handy. For now, if you would like to come over here, I will leave you a present. Feel free to wait up for your so-called 'partner' first. By now she is headed toward you. Be sure to say hello to her for me and let her know how amusing it is to listen to you two flirting while monitoring your movements around town. So disgustingly cute."

The line abruptly went dead.

Nick dearly wanted to throw the phone against the wall, to smash everything in sight, but he could not make himself do it. Instead he slumped to the floor, clutching the phone to his chest as he tried to catch his breath. All he could think of was his mother and Judy, both of whom were being watched by whomever he had just spoken with. With luck the officers at Meadowland would be able to capture him. He knew he should call them, but he could not breathe and opted to send a quick text message to dispatch on his own phone instead.

"Mom," Nick whispered after notifying dispatch, thumping the back of his head against the wall. "Where are you?"

A sudden thought crossed Nick's mind, and he lifted the phone again and tapped through the screens until he got to the recent call history. Nothing beyond his call. Next he checked the storage for anything that might hint at a previous owner, but there was nothing on the whole phone, except…

There was one video file with a title of "Watch Me."

Outside, Nick could hear more than one mammal running his way—likely the other officers responding to whatever the condo employee had told them about him. He did not have long before someone—probably Bogo—demanded he turn over the phone. Swallowing hard, he clicked on the video.

The phone's screen lit up, and Nick realized he was looking at the room he was sitting in. Whoever had the phone was carrying it in their shirt pocket, the camera sticking out. In front of the mammal carrying it, Nick could see his mother, preparing a pot of tea.

"You said you know my Nick?" his mother was asking, while Nick could hear the distant sounds of a fire alarm. "How is he? He hasn't stopped by in some time. Also, are you certain we don't need to go?"

Nick felt sick and quickly wiped a tear from his eye. He had to keep the guilt in check just a little longer.

"Very certain, and yes, I do," the mammal with the phone answered, moving through the room. He walked to the window and looked out. Nick was willing to bet he was checking for approaching ZPD. The voice was identical to the one he had spoken with, and a match for the one he had heard on the camera under Silvia's bar. "Nick said that there was some kind of threat to your safety. He wanted me to escort you to a safe house. It should be temporary. The fire alarm was set as a distraction."

Nick sobbed and put his face in his paw, trying to force himself to keep watching. He needed to know, no matter how painful.

The holder of the phone turned, and Nick briefly saw the fabric lip of their shirt in the camera. The material matched that of a ZPD uniform. No wonder he had managed to get into her room during the fire alarm. A moment later, his mother was back in the frame.

"Are you ready to go?" asked the male voice, and Nick's mother looked around, as though assessing whether she needed to bring anything.

"I suppose…" She hesitated.

Without warning, a brown-furred fist came into sight and struck Nick's mother, knocking her to the ground. Over and over, the paw slapped at her face, until she was curled into a ball, screaming for help. A final backhand stopped her from crying out, and she simply tried to cover her head, crying softly. A moment later, the video stopped.

Flopping back against the wall, Nick cried uncontrollably, sliding the phone into his pocket. He barely noticed when three officers rushed into the room, running past him to secure the whole place. Following them, Judy ran right to him and pulled him into a tight hug.

"We'll find them," Judy whispered, squeezing him and pressing her face into his cheek. "Nick, I know what happened. They took Jack too. We will find them."

Nick kept crying, no longer able to find the place within himself that allowed him to hide his emotions. Things done to him were easy to push beyond that wall, but an attack on his mother…this was beyond his ability to compartmentalize. That it had happened to Judy's family too…he could not even begin to find solace. Weeping openly, he pulled Judy close and sobbed into her shoulder.

Even once more officers poured into the room, cataloging everything, Nick could not stop himself. He wept against Judy for what felt like days, even as she softly cried too. It took her longer than he would have liked to lead him to the car, and by then he felt numb, only dimly aware as he let Judy know about the threat to Silvia.

Soon the car raced through the city toward Meadowland Health, though Nick's mind was far away. It felt like a dream. Judy ran through the hospital, practically dragging him behind her, until they reached the guarded room in a back wing where Silvia was being held. Nick did not need to see to know what had happened there. The scent of blood told him as much as his eyes could.

Both officers were bleeding on the floor, gasping for air as doctors rushed about, trying to stabilize them. Nick could plainly see the deep gashes across their chests and stomachs. Even as he walked past the doctors, he heard one of the officers—a tigress—choke and cough up blood. Judy stopped to aid the doctors, but Nick kept going, knowing he had to see everything before he could let himself feel any of it.

Walking into Silvia's room, Nick stared in numb shock at what was left of her. Silvia was still restrained, and whoever had gotten to her had used that to toy with her, breaking nearly every bone in her body. She appeared to have been beaten from chest to toe. Her face was different from the rest, though. Whereas her body had been pounded until bones broke, her head was bashed beyond recognition, leaving little more than a bloodied pulp across the pillow.

Collapsing on the spot, Nick screamed and wept—not for Silvia—but for the thought of Judy or his mother ending up looking exactly how Silvia did.


	34. Chapter 8-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 8.3 – Challenge**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday – Precinct One**

"I cannot begin to express my sympathies," Bogo said softly, though Judy doubted many were listening anymore. The room held less officers than it had at any point in her time with the ZPD, and Bogo was as broken as the officers themselves. The chief could barely look any of them in the eye. "This is the fourth day since the kidnappings. Last night, the bodies of several officers' mates and spouses from other precincts were delivered to the morgue. We are now operating at less than one-third our normal force, city-wide. I will not attempt to convince you that we are anything but at war. We are still missing three family members from those in this precinct. The search is still underway…"

Judy reached over and clasped Nick's paw in hers, no longer getting any resistance from him. There was no point in fighting it. No one cared anymore. Each of the remaining officers had lost someone close to them or was the survivor of an attack in recent weeks. She could have kissed Nick in the middle of the bullpen and most of the officers would not have noticed.

Looking back over her shoulder, Judy could hardly believe what was left of her department.

Officer Francine Pennington. The elephant still sported visible wounds from a shooting during her attempts to aid Grizzoli during the original attack on Nick and Judy. She had not spoken to either of them since the incident, but Judy could not help but see the wide jagged scar that ran from her neck to shoulder. The elephant had remained silent through nearly every gathering since then. From what Judy had heard, Francine's wife and husband had been moved out of the city in a hurry after an attempted kidnapping by several wolves who had misjudged how easy it would be to take down a pair of elephants.

Officer Grizzoli. The bear was still on leave and not expected to return after having to shoot Antonne during his attack on Nick and Judy. He had struggled to save the rhino, but ultimately had failed and held himself reasonable for taking a life. His seat was still held for him, until such time as he decided whether to return.

Officer Fangmeyer. The tiger had taken leave recently but returned after the kidnappings. His arm was no longer in a sling, but he struggled to use his right paw, and Judy had not seen him even attempt to pick up a pen. His arm hung limply. There could be no doubt about the anger he fought most of the time.

Officer Wolford. The wolf Judy knew best in the department had resigned shortly after recovering from the coma induced by his own shooting in the same incident as Fangmeyer. When she had seen him, Wolford had been slow-moving, and barely able to walk, let alone perform his duties as an officer. It was heartbreaking for her to even think about him. Perhaps someday he would return, if his spouse agreed and his recovery went well. Occasionally, he would stop by to visit the officers he still considered his best friends.

Officer Delgato. Still on duty, the lion remained as rigid as ever, though Judy knew he was struggling. During the day of kidnappings, Delgato's mate had been taken. He had not spoken of it, but Judy knew he was a hair's breadth from leaving the department if he thought it would help bring her back. Rumors hinted that she might already have been found, but if so, no one was discussing that yet.

Officer Jackson. Like Delgato, the tiger remained on duty, though he had stopped paying attention during meetings. Judy did not know the specifics, but she had heard that his own mate had been mugged during the same day as the others had been kidnapped. From what Judy knew, Jackson's mate had been beaten, leaving him with two broken legs. That warning had shaken Jackson badly.

Officer Snarlof. The bear was one of the few remaining members of the department who had been unharmed in the last week. He was single and had no living family, which had likely spared him much of the pain others had borne. Despite this, seeing his friends struggle had left him despondent and quiet.

Officers Anderson, Johnson, Swinton, McHorn, Rhinowitz, Trumpet, Oates, Higgins, and others had all taken leaves of absence, as had most of the cadets who had stepped up early to join them. That left so few in the room that Judy felt as though the ZPD had effectively quit as a whole. Those individuals still on duty were the stubborn—or the stupid, depending on who you asked. That left five officers and four cadets who bothered to show up for the day shift, plus Nick and Judy. Eleven out of a previous thirty or more, if one counted the cadets. Other precincts were even worse off. One precinct was rumored to have no officers left to put on the streets.

"Today we'll be running regular patrols," Bogo went on, rubbing at his face. Judy was fairly certain he had begun drinking recently, and his lack of concentration was indicative of that. "At the request of the mayor, we will maintain two officers in the precinct at all times, as yesterday was rougher than usual with no officers present. Unless something changes, Wednesdays will be Wilde and Hopps with help from our two latest cadets. Everyone else…go out and patrol. Let me know if you find anything."

Judy flinched as Nick's claws dug into the table, making her ears twitch. She knew he would not speak up, but he was furious about being left behind while both his mother and Jack were still being held somewhere. More than once he had voiced his belief that he was responsible. She had stopped reminding him that he was still supposed to be on desk duty.

"It's okay, Nick," she whispered. "We don't have to be the ones to do everything. The others—"

"What others?" Nick snapped in reply, though Judy knew he was not mad at her, even if the anger made her nose twitch nervously. He pulled his paw free and thumped it on the table. "Who's left to do this? We're the only team left."

Judy could not argue that, but Bogo was already leaving the room. She only barely noticed the chief clipped his shoulder on the doorway, reinforcing her belief that he had reached a level of dismay that was far past unhealthy.

The bullpen cleared, leaving only Nick and Judy, though Judy felt completely alone as Nick continued to stare at his own paws. The last two cadets—a deer and a tiger who looked even younger than Judy—soon made their way out into the precinct lobby.

"Nick, please talk to me," Judy insisted, grabbing and clutching Nick's paw so he could not pull away again. "I feel like I'm losing you. You barely talk anymore, and I haven't seen you outside work since Sunday."

Snarling softly, Nick shook his head. "I'm still with you, Judy. I just…I need to know where they are. It's killing me not knowing. With what he's done to others and how he hurt my mom…it's not easy. I don't think I've slept since Sunday at all."

"I know. Trust me, I know, Nick. I still haven't figured out how to talk to my parents about this."

Nick looked up, his green eyes locking onto her. "You really haven't told them yet? About any of it? They don't know Jack is gone?"

Judy's attempt to calm Nick seemed to fall flat as she realized she had been avoiding her own troubles in an effort to solve the case before her parents found out.

"Listen, Fluff," Nick said, turning to face her on the chair. "We're sitting here on our tails while—"

The words were lost in the ringing of a phone, though Judy did not recognize the ringtone as Nick's or her cell. Briefly she wondered if someone else had left their phone in the bullpen, but as she started to look around, Nick pulled a second phone from his pocket.

"Nick, what's…?" Judy asked, but Nick put up a paw to quiet her. "You were supposed to turn that in to evidence."

Raising the phone to his ear, Nick took a slow breath and answered it. "Hello?"

Listening intently, Judy could only barely make out the deep male voice on the other end. Whoever it might be, she did not recognize the voice.

"Hello again, Mister Wilde," the caller said, sounding amused by the faint growl from Nick. "A friend of yours has asked to see you. Such a tiny shrew of a mammal… Be a shame if his whole family disappeared. Don't worry, Wilde, the ones I took are still alive. For now. Do make sure you hurry or I might not be able to ensure they stay that way. I wish to have a talk with you and your partner and I believe it is that time."

To Judy's surprise the line went dead almost immediately, never allowing Nick a chance to reply. Nick lowered the phone to the table, his muzzle twitching in annoyance.

"I suppose I should have told you about this," he said without looking up. "He's the one who left the phone at my mother's apartment. It has a video on it…I saw what he did to her…"

Judy could not find words for a minute as she stared at the phone, wondering if she should ask him to see the video, but ultimately she doubted he would have kept it from her if there was any chance of gleaning more information from it. At length she opted to instead push on the more recent call. "A friend?" she asked cautiously.

"Mister Big," Nick answered, sighing as he tucked the phone back into his pocket. "Whoever this mammal is, he's trying to muscle in. I'm not even sure I want to know why he's telling us. This is probably punishment for Mister Big helping us get the warrant."

Judy stared at Nick, waiting to see what he would do, but he gave her nothing. "Nick, it's got to be a trap."

"I know," he admitted, shrugging. "What choice do I have? He's got my mother and your brother. If we play along, we get trapped. If we don't, we lose our only lead…and maybe their lives."

Nervously glancing around the bullpen, Judy tried to think of any other way out of the trap, but the ZPD was so understaffed that sending more officers with them all but ensured the rest of the city was in danger. Going alone was their only option, though Judy had no intention of walking in defenseless.

"I'll talk to Bogo," she assured Nick, though his eyes were on his paws and she could not be certain he was listening anymore. Judy had never seen him quite as lost as he had been the last two days. "We'll go right after. Wait for me in the cruiser."

Nick nodded vaguely and slid off the chair, heading for the motor pool.

Still standing on their chair, Judy waited until Nick had left before she hopped down and went out the other door, the direction Bogo had gone. She was halfway down the hall before she heard Bogo slam the door to his office, and she hesitated, wondering if perhaps she would be better off leaving with Nick and saying nothing. She quickly decided against that, and went to the chief's door, and knocked loud enough that she hoped he would hear her.

"Go away" came a gruff answer from within the office.

Judy resigned herself to her mission, jumped to grab the handle of the door, and swung it inward by shifting her weight. Once the door was open, she dropped back to the floor and stared across the room at Chief Bogo, who held a bottle of vodka over a small glass, his eyes wide as he watched her.

"This…this isn't…um…," he stammered, looking between Judy and the alcohol. His shoulders dropping slightly, he shook his head. "Damnit, it's not even worth lying. The ZPD is falling apart. Yes, I'm drinking on the job. I doubt they'll even fire me at this point."

"How bad is it, sir?" Judy asked, closing the door behind her.

Bogo huffed and slid his glass away from him. "The mayor is discussing defunding us city-wide. He can't actually do it, but the talk is there. If it did happen, the ZBI would take charge until we could be replaced. We need to get control of this mess quickly or the council will let him do it. Another week or two of this and things should settle down, assuming we can find your brother and Nick's mother. Those two are key to us looking like we aren't incompetent right now."

Somewhat gingerly, Judy walked around the side of the desk and reached up to take the bottle of vodka off it. Walking to the open window, she sat on the chair nearby, while Bogo adjusted to watch her.

"Sir," she began, tilting the bottle out the window and slowly pouring it into a dumpster far below. "Nick and I got word that Mister Big may be the next target. With your permission…"

"Whatever you want, Judy," Bogo muttered, looking more disturbed by her pouring out the alcohol than by what she was saying. "I can't give you any backup, but the cadets can handle paperwork and phone calls while you are out. You know the situation as well as I do."

"I do, sir. We'll be as careful as we can."

Bogo's shoulders sank a little lower as the last of the vodka dripped from the bottle. Shaking his head, he reached into one of his desk drawers and pulled out two syringes, which he placed on the edge of the desk where Judy could reach them.

"Night Howler antidote," he explained. "There's not nearly enough to go around with all the hospitals demanding to have a few doses on hand. These two are all the precinct received. It may be another week before we get more. If you're going out, I want you two carrying them."

Judy got off the chair and walked over to look at the two syringes. "When do we use them?"

"When you know you need them." Bogo sat back in his chair and poked at the empty glass in front of him. "If you're exposed, you have maybe ten seconds to use it. If you know you're about to be, the antidote gives you almost a day of immunity, but you'll need to get any serum off your skin and fur before it wears off or you're right back where you started."

"What about the new serum that they used on Silvia? That one took a while to kick in and she remembered everything through it. The others only remembered bits and pieces."

Bogo shook his head. "I have no idea, Hopps. I'd wait until you know you're going to get exposed or just after. The longer delay on will be hard to guess at. Best answer I can give is to use it at the last moment and spend some time cutting away any fur with serum on it quickly. Hopefully you don't have to find out whether this even works. The only tests we've really had were after someone's already affected and the serum has been fully absorbed, and then it takes days to fully bring the mammal back to normal. The longer they're affected, the longer it takes to work."

Judy carefully took the syringes and studied them quickly so she had some idea how to use them in a pinch. They were about as basic as one could get. Pop the cap, stab into skin, and the autoinjector should take care of the rest. From what she had heard at the hospital, the antidote did not even require a vein. There was very little way to screw up, other than to simply not have it.

Sliding the syringes into her uniform vest's pocket, Judy started to leave the room, but Bogo spoke, stopping her in front of the door.

"Officer Hopps," he said, sounding tired. "It's been a pleasure working with you. Nick as well. I'm sorry I wasn't the leader that the precinct needed. That the city needed. I take full responsibility for the losses to the department and will be handing in my resig—"

Judy rounded on Bogo and he jumped a little. "Chief, stop it right now! The next person who tells me they're to blame for all this has to listen to me yell at them until they change their minds. Clawhauser blames himself for not dispatching faster during attacks. You blame yourself for your leadership. Nick blames himself for losing Jack and his mother. Fangmeyer blames himself for Wolford getting hurt. Do you know who I blame?"

Bogo shook his head very slightly.

"The mammal who actually did all this! He's doing this to us for some reason. He is tearing apart the department and everyone who blames themselves is helping him. We aren't going to get through this until we work together and find the strength to stand up to him. Can I count on you or not?"

Slowly smiling, Bogo took a deep breath and reached down to his desk drawer. From it, he pulled another bottle of alcohol, which he dropped unceremoniously into the trash can nearby. "Well said, Hopps," Bogo noted, leaning back in his chair. "Go follow your lead. I'll keep waiting for the officers from the hospital to wake so we can find out more about our mystery attacker. Be careful out there."

Judy hurried from the room, not really wanting to stay to see Bogo slip back into despair. She could feel it looming in her own heart, but she could not let it be visible to others. Too many people were struggling and needed to see someone who was unwavering. She would gladly be that person, no matter how she felt or how hard she cried for Jack when she was far from the eyes of others. Only Nick might know how she truly felt, but even he seemed willing to cling to her enthusiasm and drive, ignoring the moments when she faltered and wondered if the city was going to collapse under the weight of the attacks.

Chaos had already begun to spread through the streets with the latest round of ZPD assaults. No one trusted that they could defend the city anymore. They were not wrong either. With so many officers gone, the ZPD was barely managing to contain the riots within some districts. Mammals were scared and were calling for an entirely new government. The rising crime rate was both an indication of this and a cause of it. Every single incident could be traced back to the mysterious crime lord's actions, triggering fear and uncertainty wherever he went.

 _And still no face to put to that_ , Judy reminded herself. _All these attacks, and all we've gotten was a glimpse of a large mammal with brown fur on hospital cameras. It could be anyone._

Shaking off her worries, Judy forced herself to smile as she came through the lobby, passing Clawhauser. In the last week, the cheetah had lost a considerable amount of weight, and she was afraid he might not be eating at all. Most of the time, he sat in his chair, holding the picture of his boyfriend and waited with one paw on the dispatch mic, trying to be ready for the next call.

"Morning, Benji," Judy offered, but Clawhauser did not reply. He just nodded and kept watching the dispatch board. "Do you know if Nick is already outside?"

Clawhauser blinked a few times and finally looked at her, his blank expression fading into a deep frown. "I think he's got a cruiser pulled around. Where are you going, so I know where to send cars if things go badly?"

Judy wanted to assure him that things would be fine, but she knew better, given the call Nick had gotten. "Mister Big's. We will try to be back as quick as we can."

"I'll call in for two cars from Tundratown to join you," Clawhauser insisted emotionlessly. "We're in a turf war between crime lords. Visiting one isn't going to go unnoticed."

Climbing up to her belt on the desk, Judy reached across and patted Clawhauser's paw reassuringly. "I know. We'll be careful. Thank you for watching out for us."

Clawhauser squeezed her paw back. "You two are the only…you're all I've got left here. Let me know if there's anything else I can do. Get out of there if things even begin to look dangerous, okay?"

Judy smiled back but opted not to reply. She could not make herself lie to Clawhauser. They were walking into a trap, so it was already looking dangerous. Telling him they would avoid danger would mean not leaving in the first place.

Walking out of the precinct, Judy quickly spotted their cruiser, with Nick sitting in the passenger seat, waiting with his eyes closed. He did not look up as she approached. "Bogo knows where we're going, as does dispatch," she let him know as she got in, but Nick looked down and stared at the phone in his lap. "We've got some backup coming to watch for us, just in case."

Nick kept silent as he slid the phone over so she could see it. Judy then realized it was not Nick's but the disposable left for them at his mother's condo. On it, there was a text message with an attached picture that was open.

The picture showed Jack and Nick's mother, both tied to chairs, blindfolded, and the vixen was also muzzled. Neither appeared to be conscious. Blood was dried into the fur of their faces, as though they had been beaten severely and often.

Judy scanned the picture for any information that might help them and realized the room was Mister Big's main office—those chairs were the same ones she had sat in before. There was no doubt where the picture had been taken.

Before she could say anything, Nick reached over and closed the image so Judy could see the message that accompanied it. It was one line.

 _See you soon. Love and hugs._

Putting the car into drive, Judy raced out of the precinct, driving faster than she ever had before as she made her way toward the outer edge of Tundratown.


	35. Chapter 8-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 8.4 – Challenge**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday – Tundratown Outskirts**

The cruiser's brakes screeched as Judy slowed near the archway of Mister Big's home. Nick sat up straight as he unclipped his still-holstered tranquillizer pistol. He expected a fight from the moment they arrived, but as the car rolled up to the entrance, a large brown bear in a suit lowered the chain that normally blocked the road, allowing them in. Everything appeared more or less normal, which frightened him even more.

As an afterthought, Nick checked the syringe Judy had given him, tucked in his vest. They could not be too careful.

"You see anything, Carrots?" he asked, leaning to look around the yard from different angles as they rolled to a stop in front of the house. "I've got nothing."

"No," Judy answered, her nose twitching as she searched the area, too. "Everything looks the way it always does. Do you think he faked the picture?"

Nick looked down at the phone again, but the image looked genuine. "It's possible. We can't take the chance it isn't true. We'll know pretty fast if it is."

Opening the door, Nick stepped out cautiously, keeping one paw on his weapon. With his other he verified his regular handgun was still safely tucked into the small of his back. It was more firepower than he had ever carried on duty, but still felt like far too little, given the damage he had seen the mysterious sender of the pictures do to others.

A moment later Judy joined Nick, also with a paw on her weapon, though she was doing a far better job looking relaxed. If he did not know her so well, he might have missed the tension across her shoulder muscles and the way her ears hovered just shy of lying flat.

"Now what?" she asked, squinting at the front door of the mansion.

Before Nick could come up with a reasonable answer, the bear who had allowed them entrance tromped up beside them and opened the door, then ushered them inside. They followed their usual path through the house, navigating art-lined halls.

"No Raymond today?" Nick asked, trying to pretend he was not scared out of his mind. True to form, the bear grunted, but gave him nothing. Some things never changed in that house.

Actually, some things _did_. Nick hesitated and looked back at the bear. The suit was normal, as was the escort, but he had never seen a brown bear among Mister Big's guards. They were all polar bears. Every single one. This was arguably the largest brown bear Nick had ever encountered and could have been kin to the polar bears, but his fur coloring stood out in Tundratown.

"Are you new here?" Nick asked, stopping a few feet short of the room where they always met Mister Big. At his side, Judy's paw went to her weapon. "I don't think we've seen you before."

The bear stared at him patiently, saying nothing. After a moment, the bear motioned toward the room, holding his ground, barely moving enough that Nick could tell he was actually more than a statue.

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on!" Nick snarled, drawing his weapon but keeping it at his side. "Where are Jack and my mother?"

Smirking slightly, the bear pointed at the room. To Nick's surprise he could see long fangs in that partial smile, far longer than any bear he had ever met. A glance at the massive paw which still was extended showed incredibly long claws. This was no species of bear Nick had ever met. A few sniffs and Nick confirmed the bear had the same scent he had picked up in his mother's condo.

"You can go see them or you can stand here threatening me," the bear said with a deep rumbling voice Nick recognized from the phone. "I can assure you that you cannot do both."

Nick quickly assessed his situation. He was barely out of arm's reach of the bear, who was far too close for comfort. He could raise his weapon and fire, but the bear could probably close that distance in a second and it would take more than one shot to down him. Judy's weapon was not drawn, which meant another delay before she was firing. Even if they did both hit him, the bear would be able to fight for a minute or more before the tranquillizer darts took effect.

"Are they alive?" Nick demanded.

"Of course," the bear answered, smiling more broadly. Those fangs could not entirely be covered by his muzzle and made Nick feel a sense of instinctual terror. "Nothing they cannot recover from. I do not break those I keep as trophies. There is no sense in that. Now, will you attack me or will you go to them? I'm actually rather curious. I do have precautions set for both, of course."

"You'll run if we leave you," Judy said, shifting a step away from Nick, likely to ensure the bear could not strike them both. "Drop any weapons right now."

The bear shook his head and let his paw drop to his side. "No, and I will not leave right away, even if given the chance. Besides, I tend not to run. I prefer to plan my actions more carefully than that. Now, let the predators speak, bunny. You should learn to keep your mouth shut around your betters, or your tongue can and will be removed. I'm certain the fox will find uses for you with or without it."

Nick was done negotiating the moment he picked up the scent of his mother in the area. Raising his weapon, he managed to get a single shot off, hitting the bear in the chest. The second shot went wide as the bear lunged in, backhanding Nick's chest to knock the wind out of him before shoving his weapon against the wall, smashing it. Blood ran down Nick's chest from his old gunshot wound, but he felt as though the bear had not meant to cause any real damage, as none of his ribs were broken.

"Do not fire, rabbit," the bear warned, adjusting his grip to keep Nick pinned to the wall by his wrists. The bear's paws were large enough that he could nearly cover Nick's forearms to the elbow with a single paw, and the strength Nick could feel in the bear's grip hinted that killing Nick would be trivial. "Each dart takes three seconds to fully empty and up to a minute to spread through one's body. Four full darts might be enough to put me down, but I can assure you that I will have removed your mate's arms in that minute and have likely killed you, as well. I don't intend to kill either of you myself unless you force me to. Go…tend to your family. We will talk again at some point. I merely wanted to see the two of you in person. The rest of my message can wait until you calm down. This is not the time."

Nick strained to move his arms, but the bear did not budge. Under his fingers, he could feel the broken remains of his weapon leaking some of the tranquillizer fluid across his fur, numbing the skin faintly. Over his shoulder, he could see Judy was hesitating, watching him for some clue as to whether it would be safe for her to fire.

"Judy," Nick grunted, trying to struggle, but the bear was far too strong for him. He desperately wanted her to shoot the bear before he could hurt her. The truth was, it simply would not do any good. "Get them out of here."

The bear chuckled and shook his head. "No, that won't do. Both of your kin have been poisoned, and I'm afraid I won't give you the antidote until you are both in the room, allowing me to leave. I did say I had precautions. While I won't run, I do not intend to stay here indefinitely."

"You're lying about the poison," Judy snapped, her tranquillizer gun still leveled at the bear.

"I can see how you might think that." The bear tightened his grip, and Nick shrieked as the bones in his paws began to shift. "Does it matter? I give you my word that I will not kill any of you if you obey me, rabbit. Drop the weapon and take a step into the room. You disobey me and I begin breaking his bones. When I make a promise, I keep it. You continue to challenge me and I will kill you with your lover's corpse."

Judy hesitated a moment longer, her gaze shifting from Nick and then back to the bear. Cautiously she lowered her pistol to the floor and raised both paws before backing away.

"Very good. The other handgun too, if you don't mind," the bear practically purred, grinning broadly, showing the massive fangs Nick had glimpsed before. The only place Nick had ever seen any mammal with fangs like those were the sabertooths in the museum. Behind him, Nick heard Judy drop her backup weapon. "I see she can be taught to obey orders. Maybe, just maybe, you can both be spared, so long as you learn to properly leash her, fox."

Nick growled and the bear smiled down on him, completely unimpressed.

"Continue into the room," the bear ordered Judy, and she backed away into the office. "Once inside, please tell your mate what you see."

Judy did as she was told, disappearing into Mister Big's office. A moment later she called out, "My brother, Nick's mother, and Mister Big are all tied up in here. None are conscious."

"As I said," the bear told Nick, pulling his paws away from the wall. He continued to hold Nick's arms, keeping him from moving away. "I am going to put you in that room now. In the desk drawers, you will find antidotes to wake up your family members. I will give you a moment once you are inside before I explain further."

Still struggling to get either paw free, Nick demanded, "Who are you?"

"Rolen Ursius," he said, leaning close enough that Nick could feel the bear's hot breath on his nose. "Do remember that name. I intend that everyone will, soon enough. Now get into the room with your precious little bunny."

"If I refuse?"

"Then I break her arms off and allow you to watch her bleed to death," Rolen replied smoothly. "This is how you train slaves. You punish others for their failures until they decide to be more obedient. Silvia's pain did not motivate you nearly so much, but now I have the leverage I wanted. The bunny suffers if you disobey. If she disobeys, I punish you. It's a rather elegant solution to a complicated problem of mammals thinking they have the right to ever disobey me."

Nick lunged, trying to bite at Rolen's arm, but the larger mammal slammed Nick against the wall again, dazing him. Suddenly Nick felt as though he was flying, then came down hard on the floor and slid to stop inside Mister Big's office. Looking around, he found he lay against the desk with three chairs around him—one with his mother, one with Jack, and a third tiny chair with Mister Big himself. Nearby, Judy scrambled to his side as the room's door closed with a dark finality.

"Nick!" she yelled, dropping to her knees beside him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he said, though he could barely breathe. It felt as though the skin had broken open on his chest and back. Reaching behind him for his other weapon, Nick found it was gone. "Are they okay?"

Judy shook her head, flopping her ears a little in the process. "He wasn't lying. Their pulses are awful. I didn't have a chance to grab the antidote yet."

"Do it. I'll be fine."

While Judy ran around the desk, Nick slid up so he could lean against the leg of the desk. Behind him, he heard drawer after drawer get yanked open, followed by the rattle of several objects and a distinct "ah-ha!" from Judy. Ignoring her, he slid his paw into his shirt and felt a lot of blood on his fingertips. Clearing his throat as best he could without drawing attention, Nick also tasted a tiny bit of blood. No major damage, but he was in no shape to fight. He would have to keep the blood hidden until after they were safe or Judy would worry.

"How far behind us was the backup?" Nick asked, trying not to sound concerned as Judy went to his mother and injected something into her arm.

As Judy moved to Jack, she answered, "No more than ten minutes. We stalled a little, but we've got a few minutes to kill."

A groan from Nick's mother let him know she was waking up. Nick had not expected Rolen to tell the truth, let alone for the antidote would work so quickly. By the time Judy was working to inject Mister Big with the smallest syringe, Jack had begun to stir as well, his large eyes staring around the room dazedly.

Nick shifted his position and realized the back door to the room was open. Rolen likely had not taken the time to fully explore the building yet, and that gave them a chance to get the others out in a hurry. They only needed to hide until reinforcements came.

"Mom," Nick gasped, getting up as quickly as he could. He hurriedly tore off the ropes holding his mother to the chair and ripped away the muzzle she wore. Swollen bruises around her cheeks and nose reminded him how badly she had been beaten, but he ignored them and gently shook her. "Can you hear me, Mom?"

"Yes, Nicky," she whispered back, grabbing his arm weakly. "What's going on?"

"Crazy cop stuff. We're going to get you three out of here. Can you walk?"

His mother nodded and stood unsteadily. That was all the reassurance Nick needed, and he moved to Jack's chair and tugged at the knot holding the bunny's ropes. By the time Jack was free to move, Mister Big was awake and Judy had finished untying him.

"Everyone get moving," Nick ordered, motioning toward the back door. "If you can get to the road, hide in the trees until the other ZPD officers arrive. Judy and I will deal with Rolen. Do not face him, no matter what."

With Mister Big leading the way, the three former captives walked quickly into the hall beyond the room. The moment Nick's mother had cleared the threshold, the door slammed shut and locked.

"Quite the setup that Mister Big has here," Rolen's said, and Nick had to search for the source of it. He soon spotted speakers in the ceiling. "Nearly every door in this mansion can be locked remotely. That is ingenious. We work with so much less back home. To think a shrew can become a fearsome master of others in this city is something I had not expected. I begin to understand why. Perhaps I should have gone after him first. Controlling his empire would have made my plans so much easier."

Judy ran to the rear door of the room and began fighting with the lock.

Turning to the door they had entered through, Nick put a hand on the wood and immediately knew they were not getting out easily. Despite appearances, the door was steel painted to look like wood, and the hinges appeared to be reinforced. A ZPD battering ram would take time to get through it.

Nick gave up on the door and slowly made his way around the office itself. The windows along one wall were mostly for show, with metal gratings outside them and bulletproof glass. The few vents he could see near the ceiling were screwed into the frame. Either he or Judy could probably fit through the ducts if they could remove all the screws, which would not be easy without tools.

A bright light came on across the room, and both Nick and Judy turned to look as a television mounted into one bookshelf filled with the face of Rolen.

"Ahh, much better," Rolen said, grinning wickedly. "All of my cameras are now working. Please be kind enough to wave or state your names for the audience."

Judy gave Nick a worried glance before asking, "What audience?"

Rolen chuckled and appeared to lean back in a chair. "The city of Zootopia, of course. Bellwether was sloppy in her attempts to tear this city apart. She wanted too much from the city, and that led her to make mistakes when I tried to use her. I am patient and willing to see it all burn. Watching their heroes turn on them will be enough to push them over the edge now. Every mammal in this city will see what can happen, and they will destroy the city for me or abandon it entirely. I have cast aside my fellows, as I no longer need them. You are only dealing with me."

Nick growled and sat in the chair his mother had been tied to. "Please tell me you're not going to go through with the same insane plan she had?"

"Not at all," Rolen replied quickly. "Bellwether stole my chemist and his recipes. I had far more intricate plans than she did. Not that it will matter to you. For the two of you, the results will be much the same…though I can assure you I do not use blueberries. Sadly I was unable to spare much of my remaining serum for you. There is precious little left in the city after Doug was incarcerated. I need what I have left, as I cannot make any more."

Nick and Judy met each other's eyes. He knew what this meant. Rolen wanted to see him kill her, the same way Bellwether had tried. He wanted to punish those who opposed him by making them murder those closest to them, and this time he was filming the whole thing to show the world what Nick had done.

Reaching into his vest, Nick searched for the Night Howler antidote syringe, but his fingers brushed against shards of glass and a thick liquid in his pocket. Looking down, he saw that the pocket of his vest had been right where Rolen had struck him during their initial fight in the hallway.

Nearby, Judy raised her own syringe close to her chest to show Nick that she still had it, but hopefully hide it from view.

"Before I go," Rolen went on, stepping out of the picture on the television. "I want you both to know what will happen. I will dose you, and then you will have about five minutes to say your good-byes. After that, the change will be swift and last until you receive an antidote. You will remember everything, including your actions, the scents, the tastes of your lover's blood, and the screams. By the time you are saved by the rest of your officers, I will be long gone. Having studied you both, I do believe this will break you. How long will either of you be able to go on, knowing what you have done?"

Nick lowered his voice, hoping the mics in the room might not hear him, even if Judy could. "Mine's gone. What do we do?"

Walking over to him, Judy subtly pressed the syringe into his paw and kept her voice barely above a whisper. "He's not going to dose me. We know how this goes. You're the predator. You're more dangerous. No one's afraid of a bunny. When he comes in, we try to find a way to stop him, but he'll make sure he at least shoots you. If he sticks around to dose us both, maybe we can fight long enough for the other officers to arrive."

Nick stared at the syringe and realized he had no grounds to argue. There was no one in their right mind who would pick the bunny over a fox, especially if Rolen did not know they had the antidote with them. A quick act once he was dosed might work on Rolen as well as it had Bellwether. He just needed to do well enough that Rolen moved on, thinking the job was done, even if it meant putting Judy in danger briefly until they were certain Rolen was no longer watching. Deep down, he knew that meant he might be forced to actually hurt her, if it meant saving both of their lives in the long run. The thought terrified him, and he wondered if he could actually do that…or if she was ready for that possibility.

"Nick," she whispered, putting a paw on his. "Whatever it takes. I trust you. We've been through worse. I know you won't really hurt me. I'm tougher than you think."

Nick put a paw to Judy's face, smiling sadly. "I know you are."

"How touching, even with you two whispering," Rolen muttered, coming back into the television's frame. "Maybe a hug or cuddles before we proceed? Please speak up for the audience."

Judy's hateful glare seemed to even make Rolen hesitate.

"Very well," he added a moment later. "Let's see…which one of you will I turn against the other? We need to make a good show of this."

Nick slid the syringe down along his leg where it would likely not be visible on cameras and popped the cap off. He knew he needed to inject himself and soon, but he met Judy's eyes and dearly wished he could be certain. He wanted her safe, and if he were hit with the serum, there would be little chance of her overpowering him. Still, his mind raced with possibilities of ways using their only antidote might still leave her in danger.

Without a word, Judy grabbed Nick's paw and slammed the syringe into his thigh. The chill liquid burned across his muscles, then faded quickly as it dispersed through his body. There was no changing his mind now.

"I suppose you both have a plan," Rolen went on, smiling into the camera, baring those deadly fangs. "I always do too. Good-bye, officers. Your sacrifice will be remembered by everyone in the city each evening in their nightmares. This is the moment I spared you both for. Two of the most cherished officers this city has ever had, dying on television."

Clasping Judy's paws in his, Nick waited for the doors to open. He knew it was coming sooner or later. Rolen would open the doors, and Nick would hear the awful sound of the air pistol going off and feel the sting of the serum hitting his fur. Antidote or not, he had to believe he would feel something, some sense of rage or ferocity toward the only person he had ever truly loved. Nick only hoped the antidote would allow him to keep his head clear enough that Judy did not have to see the hate in his eyes for even a moment. He never wanted her to see that in anything more than an act.

A faint click from above drew their attention to the ceiling, rather than the doors. Along the ceiling, four fire-suppression sprayers had dropped slightly.

"In case you were wondering," Rolen continued, as he got up on screen again. "I do hope that the bunny is the one to go savage, if not both of you. Imagine what that will do to the people of this city when their decorated hero—a harmless bunny—tears her lover apart? No one will ever feel safe again. I look forward to whatever comes of this. Good luck."

As the television went dark, a fine mist began to fall on Nick and Judy. The pungent stench of Night Howlers immediately filled Nick's nose, and he closed his eyes, dreading the fear on Judy's face. Frantically he swept his arms over her, trying to cover her completely from the sprayers.

"Nick, just stop," she said, leaning to put her head against his chest. When Nick looked down, he saw her fur was already discolored from the blue-purple of the serum, even after his efforts to shield her. "It's going to happen. I'm sorry…"

Pulling her into a tight hug, Nick tried to keep the fear out of his voice. False humor was all he could come up with to fill the silence as the sprayers slowly finished overhead. "You'll be fine, Sweetheart. A cute little bunny…you're not scary. We'll get through this. You might nibble a little, but I usually like it when you do."

Judy laughed sadly, tugging at his shirt to keep him as close as possible. "Promise me you'll do whatever you have to. Don't put yourself in danger just to spare me. If I get aggressive, you don't have to act like a gentleman. Hit me if you have to. Pin me, bite me, whatever it takes to keep yourself safe until you can restrain me."

Nick kissed the top of her head, tasting the bitter extract from the flowers coating her fur. "I can't do it, Fluff. Savage or not, I can't hurt you."

"Nick, do what you have to do. That's an order."

"You don't understand, do you?" he asked, nuzzling her ears. "I can't. I really, truly can't. I know I have to and it would be to save both our lives, but I don't think I can hurt you even then. We've got a few minutes. I'll tie you down on Jack's chair. If you get away…I don't know what I'll do. I can't hurt you, though. Even if it gets me killed, I can't…I won't."

"You can't just sit there and let me…hurt you."

"Nah, I'm not stupid," Nick said, smiling sadly into her fur. "I'd fight back a little. I just don't think I could really fight. I've been scared of hurting you for too long. I'm scared of what I could do to you. Proving it now would destroy me, even if you came out of it fine. I'd always know what I did."

Judy looked up at him with those huge, sad violet eyes, and Nick thought his heart would melt on the spot. "Then how good are you with tying people up?"

His sense of humor getting the better of him, Nick blurted out, "At a time like this? I didn't know you were into that, Carrots. You really should have brought that up at the apartment and not here."

The solid punch to his arm was at least a little reassuring that she recognized he was trying—and failing—to be funny. As she pulled her paw away from his arm, they both looked down, and Nick realized Judy was trembling. She appeared to try and stop the movement by clenching her paw, but the shaking continued.

"Nick, we don't have long," she reminded him, sitting up so she could kiss his cheek. As soon as she pulled her lips away, Judy went to the chair where Jack had been tied up and sat, closing her eyes as she placed both arms on the armrests, her ears sinking as low as they would go. "Do it quickly. I'm sorry for anything I say or do. While I'm still myself, know that I love you."

Getting up, Nick went to join Judy and set to untangling the rope that they had tossed aside when freeing Jack. He wanted to rush, but if he was not careful, Judy would easily slip free. He had to be calm—which was far from how he felt as he saw Judy's hind paws trembling and the twitches that were spreading across her muzzle. It would not be long before whatever was coming began.

Nick soon had the rope untangled and began looping it around Judy, tying off several times as he worked, securing her legs and then her waist to the chair. He moved to her arms next, with plenty of rope to spare. Three more sections: each arm and then her upper body. Once the final knot was tied, he doubted there was much she could do to him until he could get another dose of the antidote for her. Everything would be okay.

With a shriek Judy doubled over, causing Nick to lose his grip on the wet rope. He reached for her without thinking, intending to make sure she was not in pain, but the gaze that turned on him was not the Judy he knew. Wide, horrified, and entirely instinctual eyes met his, and the utter panic radiating from Judy made Nick want to weep. She let out another shrill cry, flailing as she tried to get free, to get away from him.

Despite the pain seeing Judy trying to run from him caused, Nick was somewhat relieved. Fear was easier to deal with than an attack. The other way around, he knew he would have tried to kill her. If Judy was terrified of him, it hurt, but he could still restrain her.

Nick reached down to grab the rope to finish his work, but Judy flailed, trying to get away from him. He finally got a grip on the rope and moved to loop it over Judy's shoulders when she abruptly threw herself sideways, screaming as the ropes bit into her legs. He could see blood on her uniform and realized she was willing to tear herself apart to get away.

Grabbing Judy's shoulders to steady her, Nick had to recoil immediately when Judy bit him, drawing blood. He stared in disbelief at the shallow gash in the back of his paw. Looking back to Judy, he could see blood on her large front teeth. Before he could decide what to do, she pulled free of the ropes on her legs, dove off the chair, and slipped through his paws as she scampered into the shadow of the nearby desk.

Nick stood near the chair, glaring at the bloody wound on his paw. He was not sure what he had expected, but being bitten by Judy was still startling. Finally he managed to drop his paw to his side and searched for Judy.

"Carrots?" Nick said, trying to keep his voice as soothing as possible. "Judy? It's me, Nick. Fuzzy, lovable Nick. Wouldn't hurt a bunny. Didn't even hurt the bunnies that stomped on my tail. Remember that? No trail of bodies, no matter how much I wanted to."

A faint chittering coo came from under the desk, and Nick hoped it meant Judy was still vaguely recognizing he was no threat to her. Inching closer to the desk, Nick slowly leaned so he could see underneath, where Judy was curled tightly into a ball, her huge frightened eyes staring out at him from the dimly lit corner, trembling as she tried to make herself as tiny as possible.

Nick lowered himself to his knees to reduce how threatening he might appear. He took his time getting down to where his chin was almost on the floor, attempting to put himself below Judy's eyes. "Nothing scary about me," he assured her, feeling almost as if he were talking down a small child. "Please don't bite me, Judy. I might take it personally. I love you and…well, damn…now I can say it. How messed up is that? Anyway, I love you, and I want to help you get better. Just come out and we'll tie you up like we're playing some kind of kinky game…"

Nose twitching spastically, Judy inched a little closer, bringing one paw just barely ahead of the other. Nick could see her legs tensed, ready to leap, but her face gave him no hint that she intended to run, at least not yet.

"Okay, that's good." Nick slid his hind paw over to the side of the desk, snagged the rope that had fallen when he had freed his mother, and used one toe to drag it closer. "I promise you a big bundle of tasty flowers if you let me tie you up—wow, I hope you don't remember that line, or I'll never be able to use it again. Anyway, let the big scary fox get a little closer…"

Nick got himself partway under the desk without Judy budging. She seemed to shrink back a little, her eyes widening still further—if that were possible—but she did not run. Taking that as a good sign, Nick eased the rope up to his front paws and kept up his best smile as he slid over to Judy. He only needed to get hold of her, certain he could overpower her without having to hurt her at all. Nick weighed far more than her, and he was confident that he had more upper body strength than she could overcome, even in her state. It was only her hind paws and teeth he had to worry about.

Nick inched forward one more time, bringing him almost overtop of Judy. Taking the rope in one paw, he poised to pounce with his free arm. He figured tackling her would be best and give him a chance of looping the rope around her arms in a hurry.

As he jumped at Judy, Nick realized too late that Judy was rolling away from him, bringing her hind paws toward him. The resulting kick threw him backward, clutching his face as the rope slid away. He was certain nothing was broken, but his whole jaw and muzzle throbbed horribly. When he checked his paw, he found a small amount of blood and could taste more across his gums, especially near one loose fang.

"Okay, I'm done being the nice fox," Nick muttered, taking a deep breath to steady himself. "Foxes eat bunnies. I will not get beaten up by one small bunny just because I won't really hurt her."

Rolling back onto his knees, Nick now faced Judy just outside the cover of the desk. Unlike the last time, her eyes had narrowed and she had her mouth open, ready to bite…with blood still visible on her front teeth from when she had nipped his paw earlier.

"Judy?" Nick backed away slowly, and she advanced with him. "Please don't embarrass me. The other officers will never forget it if you kill me…"

Snarling, Judy lunged and slammed into Nick harder than her size would indicate, using her hind legs to drive herself forward. Those two sharp front teeth snapped dangerously close to Nick's neck as he rolled to avoid her attack. Even Judy's short claws raked his uniform, tearing away part of his shirt.

Nick tumbled backward, managing to extricate himself from Judy's mindless flailing. As he got his paws under him, he dove for the desk, trying to pull himself out of harm's way. He never made it. Judy soon latched onto his lower leg, biting deeply, her teeth mostly tearing away fur and his pant leg, but still managing to cut him slightly.

"Dammit, Judy!" Nick yelped, falling back to the floor as Judy skittered away. Panting, Nick searched for anywhere he could escape to, but the small closed room left him few options. A glance down at his leg showed a single line of blood where her teeth had raked him, but he doubted it would bleed for too long. "We are investing heavily in bite-sticks for you once things are back to normal!"

A distant crash outside the office gave Nick vague hope that the other officers had arrived, but that moment of excitement faded quickly when he saw Judy was padding slowly around the floor, moving so he was all but cornered.

"Carrots, I need you to concentrate," Nick said, rolling back onto his knees. Flexing his ankle, Nick was certain he could stand if he needed to. "Go with your instincts. Run. Hide. Be afraid of the fox. Anything, other than attacking. Bunnies don't do that!" Nick realized as soon as he said those words that if there was any part of Judy left in the cute yet feral monster stalking him, he had said exactly the wrong thing. Sure enough, Judy bared her teeth and leaped at him—likely her way of reminding him that she could and would do anything she wanted.

Sweeping his arm across his body, Nick barely managed to get his forearm in front of his neck before Judy slammed into him, bowling him over. The sharp edges of her snapping teeth tore at his arm, leaving painful slashes that thankfully did not cut too deep.

Nick rolled her off him and flipped over before Judy could get away again, diving atop her as she scrambled to get out of reach. He grabbed at her arms and body, fighting tears that came unbidden as Judy shrieked and flailed, sounding as though he were killing her. It took all of his resolve to even attempt to hold her through those cries, and he expected he would be hearing them in his sleep for some time to come.

"I've got you," he whispered, wrapping his arms around Judy, keeping her facing away from him so her teeth were no longer a threat. Her tiny claws on her front paws scraped along his shirt, trying to get enough purchase to pull free. More than once, her hind paws slammed into his hips, but Judy did not seem to understand how to maneuver to properly hurt him. Soon she went limp and cried in his arms.

Nick wiped his own tears against the back of Judy's head and ears as he clung tightly to keep her safe. "It's okay, Carrots. I'm here. I won't hurt you. I'm not going anywhere. Fight if you have to. I'll take it. Whatever you need to do. Nothing you can do to me will chase me off. I know this isn't you."

A few minutes later, a booming crash against the room's door set Judy to squirming again, but she settled into his arms again when she found she could not escape. The animalistic wailing resumed, and Nick could not help but join her, despite the crack of the door being ripped off its hinges as ZPD officers broke in. He could feel her heart racing against his arms, even when she appeared calm.

"Officer Wilde? Hopps?" asked a young wolf from one of the other precincts, who stared at Nick and Judy with something mixed between shock and horror.

"Yeah," Nick answered, still not budging, even when Judy tried to bite him again. "Get some Night Howler antidote in here. My…my partner's not doing well."

The wolf inched closer and knelt near Nick. "I don't think we have any with us, but my partner will go check. If not, it'll take an ambulance another ten minutes to get here. How long has she been like this?"

Judy snarled again, but Nick held tightly, caught somewhere between a hug and restraint. "That's fine. Get them here. I've got her, no matter how long it takes. I think we're going on about ten or twenty minutes. Hard to say. Lost track of time after she turned."

Sitting down, the wolf waved off another officer, who likely went to go call for the ambulance. "Sir, you're bleeding."

"I know," Nick replied, laughing weakly. "Fiercest bunny in the city right here."

"The cuts on your leg and chest look pretty bad."

"I'm fine."

"I can grab a tranq gun, and maybe if we give her a small enough dose…"

Nick shook his head. "I promised her I wouldn't leave her, no matter what happened. I'd rather have her bite me again than wonder if she'll wake up. Besides, the tranq guns can be risky on a mammal her size unless you fire from pretty far away. I swear I'll be fine."

The wolf looked between Nick and Judy several times before sniffing a little louder than he probably intended.

"Don't bother trying to figure it out," Nick warned, leaning back against the desk as Judy struggled again briefly. "I don't know what all your nose is picking up, but please don't ask. Judy is my partner. Let's leave it at that for now."

Shaking his head, the wolf appeared distinctly uncomfortable. "We found the other three on our way in. Do you know if there's anyone else on the grounds?"

"Rolen Ursius. Big brown bear of some kind. He's the one who did this and the one who attacked Meadowland Health."

"No sign of any bears," the other officer assured him. "Want me to call that in?"

"Please. I don't want him getting the drop on anyone else today."

Nodding, the wolf backed away and stood, taking out his radio. "Officer Cannus to dispatch."

Nick shifted his grip a little, feeling Judy squirm and struggle even more briefly than before. Once he had her settled again, he was able to slowly pet her ears. Thankfully that seemed to calm her even in her enraged state. It took almost a minute, but she soon settled against his chest, purring faintly.

"Cannus to dispatch, please respond."

Nick kept gently stroking Judy's head, satisfied with the way it eased her racing heart and the fear and anger in her eyes. Not long after that, Judy had relaxed so much that Nick wondered if she might actually fall asleep in his arms.

"Clawhauser here" came the reply at length, though Benjamin sounded entirely winded to Nick.

"We have Wilde and Hopps at the mansion," Cannus explained, smiling at Nick. "They're hurt, but alive. My partner has called in for a dose of Night Howler antidote, as Hopps appears to be affected. Wilde wanted me to report in that we have a large bear named Rolen Ursius at large and may be involved in this attack."

"Roger that," Clawhauser replied. "I'll call it out…what was that? I'll get back to you, officer."

Putting away his radio, Office Cannus pulled one of the chairs closer and sat down to watch Nick and Judy.

"How's your day going so far?" Nick asked, trying to sound casual, even as Judy snapped again near his neck before calming under his petting.

"Not nearly as strangely as yours, I'd wager," the wolf answered, shaking his head a little. "You sure I can't get you anything?"

Nick shook his head. "Nah. Got everything I need here. Rabid bunny, sucking chest wound, and the dire need for still more stitches. Pretty normal afternoon for Precinct One. Coffee would be nice, but I doubt I can drink it without a long straw."

"You remind me of why I work Precinct Nine."

Nick chuckled and shrugged. "Wouldn't be fun if it wasn't a challenge, right?"

A deafening explosion rocked the building, and Nick heard windows shattering in all directions. He was so surprised that he very nearly lost his grip on Judy when she began thrashing again, and it took him another minute or two to settle her enough that she would allow him to hold her, though her eyes remained wide and frantic and her heart was pounding.

Cannus ran for the door of the room but was almost immediately met by his leopard partner, who was covered with dust.

"There was some kind of explosive in the front drive," the leopard explained, panting as he collapsed. "Both our cruisers are…well, there's nothing left. The three mammals we rescued are safe in one of the other buildings."

"Don't suppose you found any antidote before things went sideways?" Nick asked, though he did not take his eyes off Judy and only watched the others from the corner of his eye.

"Actually, yes," the other officer replied, coming over cautiously. As soon as he took a step into the room, Judy began fighting to get free again. "If I remember what they told us when they passed these out, she has to take it within the hour or it'll take days before she recovers. I got lucky that I found it and got away before the cruiser went up in flames."

"Just toss it over," Nick begged, locking his arms around Judy. He felt her teeth brush his sleeve, but it was her feet that worried him more. A solid kick to his thigh made his whole leg ache, and the way she was squirming, she had a good chance of aiming a kick at his torso or groin. "The fewer threats she sees, the better."

A faint clatter let Nick know the officer had done as he was asked. Looking down, he saw a standard needle filled with liquid—not one of the automatic syringes they had been given.

"It's old," the leopard warned, apparently noticing his concern. "We got that after Bellwether. I don't even know if that stuff goes bad. It's all we're getting for a while, though."

Nick took a deep breath and tried to evaluate whether he would be able to pick up the needle and use it in any manner without exposing himself to a bite or kick. The odds were not in his favor. The moment he eased his grip on Judy, she would have the leverage to hurt him badly.

With one paw, Nick began stroking Judy's ears again, until she leaned against his chest and cooed faintly. Using that as cover, he slowly let his other arm drop—knowing it meant Judy was entirely free to run if she noticed—and grabbed the needle. He flicked off the cap with his thumb-claw, maintaining the steady strokes on Judy's ears throughout.

"Please don't bite me," he whispered, wrapping the arm with the needle around her to position it behind her back and hold her somewhat still.

He pushed the needle into the soft area of skin on Judy's right arm, near the shoulder. She did not react immediately, but as he neared halfway through, Nick felt her tense and her ears shot up despite his efforts to pet them.

"All done," Nick purred at her, tossing aside the needle. Moment by moment Judy started to relax again. "See? Fox isn't so scary at all."

Looking toward the doorway, Nick found that Officer Cannus and his partner sat on the floor just outside the room, watching. Both smiled at him reassuringly, though Nick knew he was not safe yet. Until Judy was able to recognize him and talk, she could still attack at any moment.

"Did you call in the explosion?" Nick asked, once he was certain Judy was not going to immediately bite at him.

"Yeah," the leopard answered. "No idea if they're sending anyone. Sounded like they were really busy at dispatch. Figured I'd try again in a few minutes. Not like we're going anywhere."

Nick was willing to let that be and focus on Judy's recovery. The incessant racing thump of her heart had begun to slow and she was breathing easier. Whether that meant she had gotten the antidote in time to avoid longer recovery or if that was normal for the antidote, Nick was not sure, but he was happy she did not feel as though she were in immediate danger.

"Go get the others," Nick told the officers. "I want everyone able to see each other. No more surprises."

Cannus hurried off, leaving Nick, Judy, and the leopard in the office area. Slowly, Judy settled into a soft purring and nuzzled at his neck, her paws gently tugging at the tatters of his shirt. She seemed to have entirely forgotten she was cuddling with a fox.

"That's going to be an awkward story when she comes to," the leopard noted, smirking as he nodded toward Judy.

Nick smiled and decided to keep some semblance of decorum. "Yeah. Probably be horrified that she's being cuddly with some sketchy fox. Better than biting or clawing, though. I'll take it."

Minutes passed and Judy began to squirm, gradually turning to face him as she continued pawing at his chest. Soon her nuzzling grew a bit more insistent, and Nick started to wonder if perhaps something was wrong with the antidote. She appeared uncomfortable and whined as she ran her claws over the buttons of his shirt. After a moment of frantic pawing, she tried to bite one button off his uniform.

"How far to Tundratown Medical from here?" Nick asked, noticing the leopard also had begun to look worried. "On paw, of course. We might need to get her there is she gets any worse."

"Twenty minutes, give or take."

In the hallway Nick could hear Cannus talking to someone. Faintly he heard his mother's voice and Jack's shortly after.

"Okay, so here's what we're going to do…," Nick said, when Judy started using her legs to tug at his pants.

More than a little surprised, Nick stared down at her, while she continued to whimper and scratch at him. Her forepaws were moving farther down his shirt, and for a moment, he wondered what her drug-addled thoughts were triggering her to do. A bunny should have been scared and trying to run. The only other thing a bunny might…

"Oh shit," Nick muttered as a sweeter scent caught his attention and he waved at the leopard to get his attention. "Keep the others out of the room!"

The other officer sat bolt upright, putting one paw to his tranquillizer gun. "What's wrong?"

"Just keep them out! She's still…uh…affected by the Night Howlers."

"Wilde?" the leopard asked, easing his paw off the weapon but still not acting to keep the approaching mammals from coming to the doorway. "I'm not seeing any savage behavior. That looks more like…"

Judy's paws slid down onto Nick's crotch, and he did his best to hide how much he wished Judy were fully herself. The cooing and nuzzling was not helping one bit, nor was the way she was trying to keep her hips firmly against his. Another time and place without drugs involved and he would have been thrilled, but this was all wrong, especially with an audience.

"She thinks she's in heat," Nick told the leopard, banging the back of his head against the desk. "This is all going to be embarrassing enough without her brother or my mother watching her try to…you know."

The leopard officer's eyes widened, and he looked like he was going to be sick. "Animals haven't gone into heat in thousands of years…"

"And they don't go savage, right?!" Nick snapped back as he tried to push Judy's paws away from his groin. She refused to back down and kept trying, apparently struggling with confusion over how his pants worked. That might have been the only thing saving him from far more embarrassment. "I'll deal with my partner. You keep everyone out of here until she's back to normal."

Scowling, the leopard moved out of sight, and Nick heard him talking to the others. Thankfully he avoided the details and instead told them that Judy was still savage and that Nick had asked them to stay close, but not in sight. Nick heard them all sit in the hall somewhere nearby and begin talking.

"We are going to have a great big laugh about this later, Fluff," Nick whispered near Judy's ear, as she pouted and tried one more time to tug at his pants. A moment later she began pawing frantically at her own belt and pants. "I won't hold you responsible for anything you do or try to do."

Judy turned around in his lap and shifted as though trying to coax him into mounting her.

"A greeeeat big laugh," he told himself, pulling her back into a hug. With luck he would not have to stand up anytime soon, lest everyone see exactly how he felt about Judy's behavior. The decision to keep her in his lap immediately felt like a mistake as she began rocking her hips against his. "Oh my gods, this is not happening. Insane crime lord tries to kill us all and instead I end up with a horny bunny."

Nick froze and looked around the room, realizing Rolen's comment about there being cameras meant others might be watching the scene unfold. Grumbling, Nick dragged himself and Judy to the underside of the desk, where it was highly unlikely anyone could see them.

"Okay, now you're safe," Nick reassured her once they were hidden away. "Act as silly as you want. You know I'll forgive you. Just leave the pants on."

For the next ten minutes, Nick felt as though he were getting the strangest and most ill-advised lap dance of all time. Judy kept turning about, trying to find some way to get through his and her pants, kept pawing at him, and when that would fail, she would flatten out against his chest, nuzzling. Gradually, her frantic behavior slowed and she began to calm down. After about twenty minutes, she lay snoring softly on his chest, her paws still occasionally sliding over his shoulders gently.

"I think we're all safe now," Nick announced, coming out from under the desk. Pulling Judy into his arms, he carried her toward the door as the other officers moved into view.

"Everything okay?" asked the leopard, watching Judy warily.

Beside him, Cannus sniffed a few times and smirked, but thankfully kept his mouth shut.

"Yeah, she's about as relaxed now as she's going to get," Nick explained, trying not to acknowledge the twitch in Cannus's muzzle at a joke best left unsaid. "Her eyes are almost back to normal. Have you heard anything from dispatch?"

Cannus shook his head. "Nothing. Never even heard them put out the call about Rolen. It's been dead silent."

Frowning, Nick held on to Judy with one arm and pulled his radio with the other. Thumbing the button, he said, "Clawhauser. Wilde to Clawhauser. Where's our medical team?"

Silence.

"Clawhauser? Dispatch? Anyone at the precinct?"

The faint hiss of the radio was steady for a full minute without any reply.

"Bogo?" Nick was starting to get concerned. "Wilde to Precinct One? Can anyone hear me?"

This time the radio clicked as a familiar voice came on the line.

"Hello, Officer Wilde," Rolen replied, the bear's deep voice sending shivers through Nick's skin. "I'm afraid the precinct is unable to respond at this time. I take it that you have dealt with your bunny problem?"

Nick looked down at Judy, still napping in his arms. Forcing his voice to sound grief-stricken in the hope that Rolen might misunderstand, he answered, "I did, you bastard. I put her down. What have you done to the ZPD?"

"Not much, yet" came the immediate response. "Still setting up cameras for another big show. I should have this filmed by the time your fight with the bunny goes to air. You may as well sit back and relax. I do know the traps I set went off, so I doubt you have any way to get back here. And I seriously doubt you'd want to see the results of my work, anyway."

"Don't you ever get tired of Night Howlers?" Nick demanded.

Rolen laughed. "I do, actually. They serve a purpose once in a while. I actually prefer to do things with my own two paws. No Night Howlers here. Those are for special occasions."

Nick shoved his radio back into his belt. "Anyone have any ideas how we can get to Precinct One in a serious hurry?"

Cannus and the leopard both shook their heads.

"There's no other cruisers on the road today," Cannus admitted sadly. "If we can't get to dispatch, we won't get backup from another district."

The leopard added, "This far out in Tundratown, there won't be civilian cars either. It could be hours of waiting or easily half an hour of walking just to find someone. We're better off hiking to the hospital."

"Civilian cars," Nick repeated, slowly forming an idea. Digging through one of his belt pouches, he found his cell phone and began typing on the screen. Thankfully he had the number memorized.

The phone rang and rang, making Nick wonder if perhaps he had gotten the number wrong or the mammal on the far end was unavailable. Finally the line picked up right before voicemail.

"Hello…"

Nick opened his mouth to reply, but held on a moment just in case.

"…there?"

Smiling, Nick replied, "Flash, Flash, Hundred Yard Dash! You still on a suspended license?"

"Fuck…"

Nick tapped his hind paw, waiting.

"…you…"

Taking a deep breath, he let Flash finish.

"…Nick."

"What if I told you I can get your license back?" Nick offered, hoping he was not lying. The lack of any breath intake to reply let him know Flash was listening. "One day free pass to drive as crazy as you want. No tickets, and if you help us out, you get your license. Sound like a deal? If so, come to 88 Badger Lane, Tundratown."

Several long seconds passed, and Nick hoped the faint noise he heard was Flash grinning.

"It's…"

Nick began pacing, wishing he had another mammal he could call. Finnick might answer, but knowing him it would be an hour or better.

"…a…"

Kissing Judy's head, Nick wanted to throw his phone, but he managed to keep his cool a little longer.

"…deal."

The sound of an engine accelerating filled the phone, making Nick look down.

"Were you already driving?" asked Nick incredulously. "Flash, were you driving without a license?"

"See you…soon…Nick."

The line went dead after a squeal of tires.

"I am going to kill that sloth," Nick muttered, putting away his phone. Both officers looked at him as though he were insane. "Don't even say it. Yes, I know who I called. He'll be here to pick us up sooner than you'd think. If I have to give him back his license to get us into town, I'll be happy to be the one to arrest him again tomorrow and take it away."

Drawing his service pistol, Cannus shrugged as he eyed the clip. "I don't care who you called. I'll take a garbage truck if it gets us to the precinct before anyone else gets hurt."

The leopard verified his own tranquillizer pistol. "Agreed. Lead on, Officer Wilde. I think we're all done playing that bastard's games."


	36. Chapter 8-5

**The Pursuit, Chapter 8.5 – Challenge**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday – Precinct One**

Nick felt as though he would disappear into the seats from the pressure against his body as Flash raced them through the city streets. Once he made the mistake of looking at the speedometer, and when he saw it pass one hundred and fifty on a relatively short, straight section of road, he decided not to do that again. Instead he kept Judy cradled in his arms as she slept and prayed Flash could keep from crashing them into something.

In the backseat Officers Cannus and his partner, Officer Spetz, cowered and kept their eyes tightly shut. All of their bravado had gone out the window the first time Flash had stomped on the gas pedal, and by the time they had reached the border of Savannah Central, Nick was certain he had heard both whimpering…and possibly at least one prayer to a higher power. Neither seemed particularly religious and if what Nick overheard was correct, they were making up targets of their prayers out of desperation.

They had made only one stop along the way, and that had been at Nick's insistence. Cannus and Spetz had wanted to leave Jack, Nick's mother, and Mister Big behind for their safety, but Nick did not trust that the mansion was without any more boobytraps. They had all crammed into the car, then deposited the civilians at a fire station on the path to the precinct. That at least gave Nick some semblance of peace, knowing they were safe for the moment, which would let him focus on what needed to be done.

Minutes later the car skidded to a stop in front of the ZPD station, and Nick once again heard the whimpers from the backseat. With the car's final lurch, Judy woke up and looked around in complete confusion, blinking hard.

"No time for questions," Nick told her as she sat up, ears high and turning about. Digging around his belt, Nick pulled out Judy's tranquillizer gun and put it in her paw, leaving him with Spetz's tranquillizer gun, while Spetz carried his service pistol. "Rolen's done something to the precinct. We've got four-on-one, but he probably knows we're coming."

Judy nodded and took the gun. With her other paw, she touched the cuts in Nick's shirt that she had caused, her ears and nose going bright red. She did remember everything, if he was reading her face correctly.

"We'll talk about that later," Nick said, and Judy nodded reluctantly. "You back to normal?"

"Not completely," she admitted, her voice a little hoarse. "I still feel really sick, but I'll manage. I don't think I'll do anything…weird…anymore, if that's what you mean. Do we know if Rolen has others with him?"

From the backseat Spetz replied, "No idea. I'd assume so. Even with our low numbers, I can't picture one mammal taking down a whole department."

Nick shoved open the door of the car, and Judy hopped from his lap to the sidewalk, lifting her weapon in both paws to cover them. Given that Flash's car only had two doors, Nick followed Judy out and reached back to release the lever on his seat to allow Spetz and Cannus out. Within seconds all four officers were on the sidewalk, weapons drawn.

"Are we going lethal or capture?" Cannus asked, patting the regular handgun at his hip. "He's killed how many so far?"

Nick wanted to argue for restraint, but to his surprise, it was Judy who spoke up first.

"Take him down by any means," she snapped, her ears low as she swept her attention across the front of the precinct building. "A single dart won't even slow him down. Use bullets if you have to. There probably won't be time to wait around for four or five darts to sink in. Unfortunately we've only got the two pistols and three tranq guns. Use what you feel comfortable with, but be mindful of your shots. Overkill is recommended."

Behind him, Nick heard Cannus draw his pistol. Two tranquillizers and two handguns. Between those, Nick could not imagine even a bear as large as Rolen standing long. Given that most bears could take bullets as easily as tranquillizer darts, Nick was not certain either had an edge over the other.

"Judy, you sure you're up to this?" Nick asked, noticing that Judy was blinking rapidly.

"Yeah," she replied immediately. "The sunlight hurts. I might throw up along the way, but let's go."

The four of them advanced quickly on the precinct, while Flash drove off behind them, leaving them to fend for themselves. To Nick's dismay no one came out of the precinct doors, despite four officers—two looking as though they had already been through a warzone—approaching with drawn weapons.

When they neared the doors, Judy glanced back at the others. "Spetz, go right once we're inside. Cannus, left. Nick and I will head for Clawhauser's desk and then upstairs. Call out if you see anything. I don't want anyone facing Rolen alone, so run if you encounter him. Don't stop moving. Given what we've seen from this mammal, there will probably be traps of some kind."

They paused briefly at the doors, each of them double-checking their weapons. Finally Judy gave a nod, and they rushed inside, then parted once they cleared the door, with Spetz rushing toward the locker rooms and bullpen, while Cannus ran for the staff offices.

Nick followed doggedly at Judy's side as they walked quickly through the lobby. He kept one eye down the sight of his weapon, searching for any movement along the edges of the room. Judy held hers up a little more, watching the balcony and stairs. Neither of them had weapons that would be able to hit anything more than about thirty feet away, but their training was adamant about how they should move with a drawn weapon.

"Clear," Judy called out, stopping at the foot of the stairs.

Nick leaped onto the front desk, ignoring the agonizing pain through his chest. There was no time to worry about a little internal bleeding. Sliding across, he dropped alongside Clawhauser's chair, finding the large cheetah lay back in it, his eyes closed.

"Benji," Nick whispered, stepping up alongside his friend. When he saw no movement, Nick touched Clawhauser's neck and felt a faint pulse. Looking him over, Nick spotted three tranquillizer darts in the back of Clawhauser's neck.

Glancing around the room, Nick tried to guess what angle could have hit Clawhauser from behind. The only place he could imagine would have been either the balcony or stairs, which meant Rolen had already slipped past by that point or had mammals on the inside. Given the limited range on the tranquillizer handguns, that meant that the attacker managed to get right up near Clawhauser or they had gotten into the SWAT gear downstairs, among which were several longer-range tranquillizer rifles. Using those, they could have easily hit Clawhauser from the balcony.

Judy glanced over her shoulder at Nick, her ears high overhead as she waited for him to let her know what he found.

Motioning toward Clawhauser, Nick indicated the cheetah was okay. Pointing toward his own eyes, he then motioned toward the balcony. Judy nodded in reply and returned her attention to the upper floor.

Nick reached up and plucked the darts from Clawhauser's neck and back, though he could see all of them were empty. With luck Clawhauser might wake in under an hour, though Nick knew they did not have that kind of time.

"Nick!" Judy hissed, drawing his attention back.

Rolen moved along the upper floor near the top of the main staircase, now wearing a ZPD uniform with a tranquillizer rifle slung across his massive shoulder. He stopped walking, placing himself about ten feet beyond the limit of Judy's tranquillizer range near the top step. Grinning—showing off those awful fangs—Rolen leaned on the wall that ran around the balcony edge. To Nick's horror, the bear's forearms were coated in dried blood.

"You both survived," the bear said, chuckling and shaking his head. "Plenty of surprises from you both. No matter. The video will go out anyway. Hopefully there's some decent violence on it. I actually expected I had at least another hour before one of you managed to make it back here. Only had time to kill a few so far. I'd intended to have the bodies laid out by the front doors for your arrival."

"What possible reason do you have to do all this?" Judy demanded, taking a step closer to the stairs. In response, Rolen shifted back, maintaining his distance. "You aren't even from here. This city has done nothing to you."

Rolen laughed and shrugged. "Keep telling yourself that, bunny. If the fox would be so kind as to turn on the television beside him, I believe all of your questions will be answered soon enough. Any you cannot work through, I or another will answer after. No reason to remain cryptic anymore. If you do try to close in on me, I will run and you will miss out on the answers you want so badly."

Nick reached back and felt around Clawhauser's desk until he found the small television. His fingers searched the frame until he located the power button. Behind him, the sound of soap operas came on softly.

"Eleven twenty-nine," Rolen announced, looking across the lobby at the large clock on the wall. "Less than a minute."

Suddenly the television began issuing a blaring siren—the signal for a city emergency announcement. The sound had always put Nick on edge, which he had to assume was the point. After three seconds of the alert noise, Rolen's voice came over the television.

"Citizens of Zootopia," his gravelly voice announced calmly. "You have been lied to. This city is put forward as the shining symbol of unity, when it has stood as an affront to the natural way our people evolved. This so-called 'great experiment' has trapped you, turning you all into slaves for a new master. They hide from you what has already begun. Soon it will be too late. Be ready to fight for your families."

Nick turned slightly to look at the screen and saw that the broadcast was showing footage from the SWAT raid on the warehouse weeks earlier. Judging by the angle, Rolen's sniper had filmed it, showing Fangmeyer and Wolford firing into the warehouse. Unsteady zooms of the camera showed mammals in ragged clothing being hit and falling. The entire scene appeared as though the ZPD was firing indiscriminately on civilians. To emphasize that, the camera repeatedly zoomed in on Fangmeyer's uniform and once on the coy smile he always had when firing a weapon.

"This is no isolated incident," Rolen's voice continued from the television. "Time after time, those controlling you have put your lives in danger. I do not have long before they stop this transmission, but please watch if you can. Turn on those who control you before it is too late. They will kill me for letting you know the truth."

This time the screen showed Nick and Judy at Mister Big's mansion. The video started after Judy had begun to feel the effects of the serum. Within seconds, anyone in Zootopia watching a television was seeing her attacking him wildly. Nick could barely watch as a thin spray of blood from his leg nearly hit the camera. The video ended before he had managed to get her under control.

Another round of alert tones concluded the broadcast, and Nick tapped the power button again.

"Please tell me you understand?" Rolen asked, leaning fully on the balcony wall. "Or does this fine city's public education lack any truth behind it, the same way its founders lied to the people of that time?"

Judy looked back at Nick, but he shrugged in reply. He honestly could not remember much about history in school.

"Zootopia was the compromise," Judy yelled back at Rolen, inching forward. This time he did not back away. "Predators and prey. We came together to build something to unify us. This was to be the hub of a new world."

"A hub of a world built on lies and betrayal!" Rolen snarled, standing up sharply. "Tell me, bunny, four hundred years ago, who called for the building of this city? Was it a partnership between the species? A community of unified predators and prey? Tell me who called for its creation!"

Judy's ears lowered nervously, but Nick saw her manage to slide her paws a little farther forward, closing the gap between her and Rolen. She would have to be at the foot of the stairs to even attempt a shot. "The local villages of prey went to the leaders of the predators…"

"Lies!" Rolen roared. One of his paws came down on the railing and Nick could hear the metal bend under his grip. "If that were true—do you know what or who I am? Do either of you? Which of you has ever seen one of my kind? Heard of my family? This great compromise included everyone, yet you both look at me as though I am a monster."

"That has nothing to do with how you look," Nick snapped in reply, getting a blink of surprise from Rolen as his rant was sidetracked.

"I suppose that has truth in it," the bear answered, sounding far less angry. "Do you want to know what the children in my lands teach? Do you want to know why we hate this city and those who stand up for it? Or would you rather fight at the side of your bunny, serving the very mammals who enslaved your ancestors?"

Nick froze and looked to Judy for some kind of explanation. She appeared to be just as confused.

Rolen sighed and relaxed. "That's what I thought. They tell you nothing. The lies have gone on long enough that you believe you are their equals. How often have you truly felt an equal, Wilde?"

From the corner of his eye, Nick saw Spetz emerge from the bullpen, listening to Rolen too. With luck the bear would not know they had another gun approaching until after Spetz could take his shot. They had to keep him talking, which appeared to be exactly what he wanted to do.

"Judy's more than my equal," Nick called back. "Sounds like you just don't like prey."

Rolling his eyes, the bear eased his rifle off his shoulder and set it on the balcony wall. "You really don't understand, Wilde. This region was at war…at war with my people's lands. The prey amassed armies to stand against us, but the predators would not join them. Have you ever stopped and asked yourself why the inner portions of Zootopia—the oldest parts—have massive walls around them?"

"Those walls house the heating, cooling, and moisture-transfer systems," Judy yelled back. "They regulate the districts' atmosphere. That's pretty much the key to keeping Zootopia ideal for everyone."

"Yes, yes," Rolen muttered. "Twelve districts for each type of mammal, blah blah blah. Four hundred years ago, they did not have those systems. Geothermal and hydro-electric energy were concepts far beyond their ability to use. Those walls were not built for the atmosphere of the city. Go tour them sometime. You have the authority. Ancient cannons still sit in storage. The conditioning systems now fill what were once bunkers. The walls were to keep my people out and yours—and their captive predators—in. The fact that Zootopia is an island only helped further that cause. Your lands were under the control of the prey…nine prey to one pred ratio, I hear these days. If you look into the smaller villages and cities…how does that ratio change? Fifty to one? A hundred? More? Tell me that doesn't frighten you when you imagine what will happen if food becomes scarce? Most prey will happily eat insect proteins when starving. Where does that leave the predators? Please spare me the smart-assed fox answer this time."

Nick realized that was not unreasonable. Bunnyburrow had around eighty million mammals in its borders. Zootopia as a whole had a little more than four million and still left predators outnumbered nine to one or more.

"They enslaved the predators, Wilde," Rolen continued. "Collared us. It doesn't matter if we're stronger, faster, more deadly—a hundred bunnies will kill you far easier than one predator. A thousand will wipe out your village. A hundred thousand can lay waste to an entire region, clearing away all that you have built to make enough farms to support their growing population. Why do we enslave the prey? This is why. They cannot be allowed to outnumber us again. History is filled with the atrocities they caused. Famine, plague, and the more obvious acts of war. Did you honestly think I did all this simply to commit a few crimes in the city? To get attention? Gather a handful of new slaves? This is about the survival of all mammals. Prey are like locusts—they will scour the world if we let them. We were meant to control their population, and we have failed. Either we do what we were supposed to or we will cease to exist."

Nick found himself growling instinctively and moved to stand beside Judy. The venom and hatred he could hear in Rolen's voice left little doubt that he would kill Judy if given half a chance.

"My species stood up to them," the bear went on. "We aren't in the history books because we were all but wiped out. A civilization exterminated. The last family now stands in front of you. I am the only one left. That is why I am making my stand against this city. Once I am gone, I don't know that anyone else will remember or care what has happened and what is to come. I kill because it is my only option remaining and it is what nature created our kind to do. We kill to maintain balance that is sorely lacking."

Spetz neared the edge of the stairs, keeping himself flat to the rail so he would not be seen. He just needed the right moment and he could open fire.

Throwing both paws in the air in dismay, Rolen added, "Do you even know what Bellwether meant to do with your kind, Wilde?"

"Nothing creative. Just a small civil war," Nick answered, but Judy's abruptly lowered eyes and sad expression told him he had missed something. His weapon wavered a little as he tried to figure out what she was leaving out.

"No, no war," Rolen replied. "Slavery. She tried to do the same thing her ancestors did. It was already in the city long before I arrived, Wilde. Bellwether commissioned thousands of shock collars that were to be placed on every predator in the city. You would obey or you would suffer, possibly die. You would likely have been put to work on whatever menial tasks she came up with. That is the city you now defend. It's the city you obey, even without the collar. They see us as such a threat that we must be enslaved, and they have the numbers to make it happen. We let them outnumber us."

Nick turned his attention to Judy, but she would not look at him. "You knew?"

"I found out after," she admitted. "Bogo decided that we should keep it from the predators. No reason for more bad blood. Once the collars were destroyed, there was no sense in announcing it."

"Did I hear correctly down there?" Rolen asked, stepping forward onto the edge of the staircase. Spetz turned, ready to move out from the wall and fire. "Destroyed? How ignorant or deceitful of you, bunny. Wilde, I leave it to you to determine whether she is lying or stupid."

Digging into his pocket, Rolen produced a simple collar with a large attachment. He threw it down the stairs, where it clattered to a stop near Nick's toes.

"This is what they have always tried to do to us," he added, sounding truly tired. "Every few generations they overwhelm us and destroy those who resist. My family died out because of this. Wilde, help me fight this before it happens again. That collar was in your chief's desk. How many more do you think we can find in this building? I will not ask you to kill your loved ones, but I do ask that you reconsider this fight and help me protect our people."

Nick slowly knelt to pick up the collar. It was lighter than he had expected, aside from the pack attached on one side. Turning that over in his paw, Nick could see two electrodes that would dig into the wearer's fur. A closer examination of the box showed a small wireless receiver and an LED light.

"They were really going to do this to us?" Nick asked, the violence from Rolen almost forgotten. "They were going to collar preds? Shock us into submission? Is he telling the truth?"

Before Judy could answer, Spetz finally stepped into the open and began firing at Rolen, each shot echoing painfully in the lobby. The first bullet struck the rail, sparking at it went wide. The second and third slammed into the bear, who stumbled, putting a paw to his side where Nick could already see blood staining his uniform. Before a fourth shot went off, Rolen grabbed the rifle and ran, disappearing past Bogo's office on the second floor.

Both Judy and Officer Spetz took off running, and in the distance, Nick heard several more shots fired.

Nick knew he should go after them. Instead he found himself unable to move from the spot, staring at the collar in his paws. The collar that was exactly the right size for him. The collar that, when he examined the metal near the prongs, was clearly labeled as "Raccoon/Fox." With no raccoons on the ZPD and only one fox who had even begun spending time with the department while Bellwether was around, there was no question who it was meant for.

Collapsing with the collar in both paws, his weapon and the chase forgotten, Nick only barely heard Spetz shouting that Rolen had escaped. Nick could not get anything else to occupy his mind other than the idea that the city had truly meant to collar him and his mother, and that Judy had actually chosen to hide that from him.

By the time Nick was able to force himself to shove the collar into his pocket and get moving, Clawhauser was awake and helping other officers with their footing. Up on the balcony, Bogo stood unsteadily, accepting reports from officers even as he struggled to stay conscious. Taking a seat along the edge of the lobby, Nick watched as two cadets were placed on stretchers and covered with sheets.

Two more dead ZPD members, and he had allowed their killer to flee. Putting his face in his paws, Nick wondered if he really could find the strength to get through this. His mind kept going to vague thoughts of taking Judy, her family, and his mother, and fleeing the city before things got any worse. He simply could not think he was cut out for this.


	37. Chapter 9-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 9.1 – The Plan**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday Evening – Precinct One**

"Is this everyone?" Bogo asked, leaning heavily on the podium of the bullpen. "On duty, off duty, cadet…hell, call in the janitors if you have to. At least make it look like we're trying."

Judy turned on her chair, surveying what was left of the department. In the two hours since Rolen had escaped, they had only mustered twelve mammals. She knew one or two more off-duty officers were on their way, but it was still far less than she could have hoped for. That paltry number even included Cannus and Spetz and a few others from another precinct.

As she turned back to Bogo, Judy stopped to stare again at the large bloody stain on the concrete wall of the room where Rolen had slammed a cadet during his attack. They had never seen it coming. From what she had been told, the bear had come in under the guise of being another cadet that had been rushed into duty early. He had sat through a briefing, and when the bullpen began to clear, he had brutally killed the deer with his paws, beating her against the wall until she stopped moving. On the other side of the room, a similar stain on the carpet was where Rolen had finished off a young tiger that had seen the attack and come to the deer's aid. Those two had been the only fatalities as they were alone in the room with Rolen after the meeting, though from the sound of things, had Judy and Nick not arrived when they did, there would have been far more. Nearly everyone in the building had been taken down one by one until Rolen had control of the precinct. The attack had been methodical and well-planned.

"I don't think I need to explain what's going on, but I will for anyone who missed some of the details," Bogo continued, rubbing at his muzzle. Judy was still not certain he should be on his hooves yet, but Bogo had refused any help since waking. When they had found him, he had a half-dozen darts in his chest, which could well have killed him, despite his size. That many should have kept an elephant unconscious for a few hours. "We have a terrorist from one of the old communities causing trouble in Zootopia. He does not believe in the founding reasons for the city and is trying to topple the government from within. So far, he's succeeding.

"The mammal's name is Rolen Ursius, the only child of a coastal warlord who died a few years back after the region devolved into civil war. He was reported dead by the ZBI two years ago. The list of warnings about him is longer than I had time to read. Suffice to say he is extremely dangerous and has no qualms about killing, with or without weapons. If anything, he revels in it. Given his father's reputation for brutality in years past, we can safely say this runs in the family."

Judy raised her paw, and Bogo nodded at her. "The ZBI? What's the Bureau doing that far outside our region? I thought the coast was independent. Wouldn't that be an act of war?"

Bogo sighed and avoided looking her in the eyes, which told her as much as his words did. "I can't get into the politics of it, but I would think so too. They only opened the reports up to me about ten minutes ago. Officially, a humanitarian mission into the region was monitored by a specific team of the ZBI—dubbed Angel Team due to their work with the medical crew—to ensure the Ursius family did not interfere. That mission had to be withdrawn when avian flu broke out and the Ursius family blamed it on the peacekeepers."

This time it was Nick who spoke up, though he did not even attempt to get Bogo's permission. "Were they justified in that belief? Also, what species were the aid workers?"

"The mission reports say that the flu was new to their region and the aid workers may have been carriers," Bogo replied grimly. "The locals had no resistance to it. It only makes us sick for a few days, but they were decimated. Thousands of predators died, including members of the ruling family. Most of the aid workers were prey breeds…and yes, I am aware of Rolen's hatred toward prey, as he explained quite vividly while I was blacking out. We can safely say he believes his actions are entirely justified by what happened there. Given that the ZBI used the destabilization of the ruling family to pick off a few key targets on their way out, Rolen has a good argument against us. Zootopia is far from innocent here, but that doesn't change our duty to the city."

Behind Bogo, a television had been wheeled into the room and was lit up with video clips. Judy had not seen them previously, nor had she really wanted to. The first she had seen while they were facing Rolen in the lobby, and she heard herself making asinine noises as she attacked Nick, bouncing around the room on all fours. It was bad enough to live through all of that, but to have it shown to her coworkers made her wish the serum had wiped her memory. Thankfully she also knew the footage would cut short before the truly embarrassing parts. Trying to explain to coworkers that she had not been in control when she went into heat would have been all the motivation Judy needed to quit the moment they were done dealing with Rolen. She still was not entirely able to accept it in her own mind. That was a conversation to have with Nick another time and make sure he knew it was not going to be a regular occurrence. Being the only bunny who could honestly say what being in heat felt like in a dozen or more generations was not something she wanted to give speeches to sex education classes on.

Bogo glowered at the television as the second set of clips began. This time Judy watched in horror as footage from Rolen's rampage through the precinct went on and on. He let himself be seen. There was no longer any attempt at subterfuge. He wanted the city to see a predator killing prey. More importantly, he had included many portions that made it appear as though he were the one being attacked. It was a cleverly designed lie—prey saw him and those like him as a threat, while predators would see prey turning on them. Wearing a ZPD uniform only made matters worse.

"What is he?" Spetz asked, eliciting many nods from the other mammals. "Mixed-breeds of the same mammal type aren't new, but no bears look like…that. I can't picture a mix of any bears that gets us something that big and…fanged. I got a look at him. He's bigger than most polar bears. I put two bullets in his chest and he ran away. Not walked or crawled. I'm betting I could have emptied my weapon into him and he would still have outrun me."

Bogo took a deep breath. "The Ursius family is old…very old. They've been around that region as long as we have recorded history, though they weren't always in control. They've maintained their bloodline carefully. If you want a name for his species, I don't have it. I'm leaning toward saberbear or sabertooth bear. My understanding is that their species died out outside their extended family during conflicts surrounding the founding of Zootopia."

Judy's skin prickled. That simple statement appeared to support much of what Rolen had claimed.

"The long and short of it is that we don't know much about him," Bogo admitted. "He's taken down rhinos in a fist-fight. We have a trail of dead or wounded predators throughout both the city and his homeland. The ZBI's Angel One sent me a list two pages long of known victims from just the last month. Assume he is the apex predator here. I don't know anyone in the ZPD who can stand up to him one-on-one."

Bogo waited a minute for his statement to fully sink in. "We need to find him and stop him before he kills again. He's on the run after being chased out of the precinct, and he's injured. We're hoping he did not accomplish what he wanted here—"

"He did," Nick said, his eyes on the table in front of him and Judy. "He attacked the ZPD in its home. It's the same thing he did to Judy and I when he went after our loved ones. It's all part of his game. He believes he's following a traditional way of stalking his victims. Instill fear in a community and then pick off anything that starts running. Flush out your prey."

Bogo grumbled at the interruption, but nodded in agreement. "An absolute madmammal…"

"Not at all," Nick growled, finally looking up. Judy was shocked at the anger in his tone, especially toward Bogo. "Rolen isn't insane—he's dedicated to a cause. That cause is brutal and horrific, but he knows exactly what he's doing. This isn't some attempt to kill a few ZPD officers or take over criminal enterprises. He sees himself as the last soldier in a war his society already lost. Someone like that has nothing left to lose. I don't think he cares if we kill him. He isn't fighting to win. He's fighting to hurt everyone else. He wants the world to remember his family when they're gone."

Bogo kept quiet a moment longer, as though waiting to see if Nick had more to add. When the room stayed silent, the chief continued. "What we don't know is what he plans to do next. He claims to be almost out of Night Howler serum and unable to make more. The very fact that he told Wilde and Hopps that hints at it having some significance."

Raising a paw, Cannus asked from one corner of the room, "Did he take anything from the precinct?"

"Not much beyond the home movies," Bogo answered. "From the internal cameras, we tracked his movement around the precinct. He took one tranq rifle, a bulletproof suit, some gauze for his wounds, and something as yet undetermined from Clawhauser's desk. We believe he only took one cartridge for the rifle, so that's no more than four shots. Five if he keeps one chambered. The assumption is that he intends to impersonate a ZPD officer to go somewhere, but we have only guesses right now. If any of you have theories, speak up now."

"He's bleeding badly," Officer Spetz said to no one in particular. "Even if he can shrug that off, no one would go through all this trouble if he did not already have the next step ready to go. It has to be something immediate or we would be able to stop him. A day at most, I would wager."

From the far side of the room, Officer Capra—the same goat who had accosted Nick and Judy at the theater and did not seem to recognize them now, or was trying hard to act that way—asked, "Are there any major events? Anyone know of a sportsball event of any kind happening in the next day or two?"

A low murmur of negative replies rolled through the room.

"Concerts? Political rallies? Parades? Anything?" Capra went on.

Again, no one offered anything.

Thinking hard, Judy could not come up with anything midweek that might be public enough for Rolen to strike at. "Chief…you said something was taken from Clawhauser's desk?"

"I did."

Judy got down off her chair and ran from the bullpen, going straight to Clawhauser, who was sitting in his usual chair, frowning at a large pile of his belongings as if trying to do inventory. "Benji," she called out, coming around the back of his desk. "Any luck?"

"Nothing that makes sense." He shrugged and gestured vaguely at the pile. "I'm missing a few pens, a mug, and my picture of Nimr. Any of them could be around the desk somewhere, but I'm not finding anything important. My head's still spinning, so I could be missing it."

Judy jumped up onto the desk so she could look at the miscellaneous items Clawhauser had piled up. "Nimr? Your boyfriend?"

"Yeah," he answered, tapping the edge of his computer monitor where the picture had been taped the last time Judy had seen it. As Judy knelt beside the items, Clawhauser turned his attention to her uniform. "Were you attacked? You look like another bunny tried to tear you apart and failed."

Judy shook her head and tried not to look at the scratches all across her outfit, which had been inflicted mostly by her own claws. More disturbingly, she could still see Night Howler serum in her paw fur. "Long story that I'd rather never talk about. About that picture?"

"Aside from sentimental value, it had…oh no! Judy, I had a ticket he gave me for the music awards filming tonight taped to the back."

"That doesn't air for weeks," Judy thought out loud.

"Air, no, but films tonight downtown at the convention center. Gazelle's doing the opening performance, so Nimr wanted me to come. He's performing."

"When does it start?"

Clawhauser wrinkled up his muzzle, thinking. "Nineteen hundred hours…about an hour and a half?"

As the fear began to show across Clawhauser's face, Judy hopped into his lap and gave him a big hug to reassure him. "We'll make sure nothing happens. Thank you!"

Diving from Clawhauser's lap to the floor and tumbling before coming up running, Judy went back into the bullpen triumphantly. Bogo must have recognized she had something as he raised a hoof to silence the room as soon as she got through the door.

"Private event where they film the music awards," Judy announced. "Clawhauser had a ticket on his desk. We don't have much time, but the filming isn't far. The convention center is hosting it. It's starting in a little more than an hour. Given Rolen's talks about attacking heroes of Zootopia…he's probably intending to shoot Gazelle. He'll be able to use the media already there to get his message out."

"Then we'll get on the road," Bogo answered gruffly, as everyone got to their paws. "Everyone is mobilizing for this one. We roll out in twenty minutes. Live ammo on-paw. Have Clawhauser coordinate the location with all units, including those still on their way. I want that bear in cuffs or a body bag by the end of the night. No one lays paws on my officers and gets away with it. I want to hear about this on the news as a victory for the department, not another eulogy. Get anything done that you need settled this instant. Go!" Bogo started to leave the room, but stopped and looked to Judy and Nick, squinting as he put his glasses back on. "You two are still covered in serum. Get cleaned up. I'll hold back a cruiser for you. Last thing we need is the two of you going crazy halfway through this."

The remaining officers scrambled into action, with most heading for the precinct armory. Judy still had a full clip in her service pistol from the earlier trip to Mister Big's home, so she briefly considered hunting down a replacement uniform after a shower, given the scratches all over hers from the fight with Nick when she had been—when things had gone awkwardly. Nick needed a replacement shirt far more than she did, with tears all down his front and blood drying down one side from the latest re-opening of his old bullet-wound, yet he stayed in the bullpen, staring aimlessly at one wall. Even after all the other mammals were gone, Nick stayed where he was, looking distant.

"Hey, Slick, don't you think you should shower and change?" she offered half-jokingly, padding up alongside him. When he did not move, Judy put one paw on his arm, making him jump a little. "Your shirt?"

Nick looked down and brushed at the torn portion of his uniform shirt and the shredded tie. "I have another shirt at my desk. I'll grab it on the way out. Just doesn't seem important right now. Not much does."

Judy nodded knowingly and took his paw in hers. "Let's start with getting clean. Neither of us wants to deal with serum again."

Nick blinked hard and looked over his fur, scowling as he eyed the purple stains.

Finally certain he was paying attention, Judy continued. "Don't let what Rolen said get to you. Some of it's true and some of it's ridiculous. At the end of the day, he's still murdering innocent people."

"Yeah, I get that," Nick answered, surprising her by turning and pulling her fully into a hug. The day's events had rattled him more than she had thought if he was willing to risk being seen, should someone walk into the bullpen. It took Judy a moment to relax into the surprise hug, but it was certainly welcome once she did. She had not expected that he would be the one to initiate public affection. "I won't lie. He's got me scared, both of what he might do and his fears. And what he might do to you."

Judy nuzzled her face into one of the gaps in Nick's shirt so she could feel his fur on her cheek. "We'll stop him. After that, if the bunnies of the world unite to wipe out all life, I promise that you can stay at our place through the apocalypse. My father owes you that much. You'll learn to love carrots."

Laughing in spite of his obvious concerns, Nick hugged her a little tighter. "I appreciate that. I'm certain your father won't appreciate it, but I do. Besides, I already love Carrots."

"That's a lie," Judy reminded him. "Don't pretend like I don't know better."

"Carrots…with a capital C."

Judy could not find words for a moment and instead hugged him tighter until she could speak again. "You're just trying to make me blush now. Glad that's getting easier for you to say without me having to be insane at the time, though."

The clearing of a throat nearby startled Judy, and she hurriedly disentangled herself from Nick, stepped back, and put her paws behind her, hoping they had not been heard. Glancing around—and certain she was blushing or at least looking seriously guilty—she saw Bogo had re-entered the room and stood near the far door, staring at them with a bored expression. Alongside her, Nick was not quite as frantic, but had likewise struck a pose of innocence, his eyes wide and ears back.

"Frankly I don't care if you two were rutting in here," the chief muttered, going over to pick up a stack of paperwork from the podium. "Once things are back to normal, I will need to reprimand you if I keep seeing it, but officers cuddling in the workplace is better for morale than parking duty. Almost surprised you two are the only ones I've caught. I take it that the request to have a new senior officer is officially withdrawn?"

"Absolutely, 100 percent," Nick answered, still standing somewhat rigidly with a guilty expression on his face. "I think I'll keep her around for now. Can't let her think she's getting out of this without a fight."

"Glad to hear it." Bogo leaned on the podium and studied them both a few moments longer. "Spetz said you had something to talk with me about, Wilde? Is this a private matter or can Hopps remain?"

Judy turned a little so she could watch Nick's face. Slowly he relaxed and let out a deep sigh, but followed it with a reassuring smile at her. "She can hear anything, even if it were private," Nick admitted. Reaching into his back pocket, he pulled out the shock collar Rolen had thrown at them. He held it out to Bogo, who stared at the collar emotionlessly. "Mind explaining this?"

"I would, Wilde. I would mind a great deal, because I'd rather not see that ever again."

Nick swallowed hard but kept pushing, making Judy begin to wonder if she should simply drag him from the room before things got too emotional for him. "Tell me the truth, Chief. Were you a part of the plan to collar preds?"

"Part of the plan? Yes, I suppose so. Bellwether would have put me in charge of making it happen. Did I know I was part of the plan? Not at all. Not until nearly two weeks after she was caught. By then Hopps was in a cast and you were in the academy."

Nick's grip on the collar tightened, and Judy knew he was hiding how angry he really was. Reaching out, she grabbed his paw, pulled it down, and took the collar from him. He did not resist her at all.

"Why did you keep it?" Nick demanded, stepping away from Judy, as if to keep her from interfering further. "He said he found it in your desk. Was this a backup plan if foxes on the force didn't work out? Some kind of memento?"

Bogo held out his hoof toward Judy, and she found herself hesitating. Slowly she reached out and placed the collar on his hoof.

"He lied to you, or at least twisted the truth," Bogo explained, eyeing the collar calmly. "This wasn't in my desk. It was on my wrist. He took it after emptying two tranq guns into my chest. I've been wearing it as a reminder that I failed the mammals of the city when I could not protect the predators from Bellwether. The prongs in my arm constantly reminded me that every life in this city matters and I will not let anyone do what she did again. Yet, here we are…they did it again. This time, no collars. They did it through fear alone."

Still emotionless, Bogo fastened the collar on his wrist. To Judy's surprise the device looked very much like a wristwatch on him. She never would have recognized what it was if she did not already know. He had probably been wearing it since she had returned to duty.

"So that…," Nick began slowly, cocking his head a little, "…wasn't for me?"

"No, the union frowns on collaring my officers," Bogo answered, his dry humor difficult to pick up as usual. "By now you should know I would leash you to a parking meter or your desk, not a shock collar. I can barely read your reports as it is. High voltage would not improve your handwriting one bit. Now, do we have anything else to discuss?"

Judy studied Nick's face and for once was fairly certain she knew exactly how he felt: utter relief. Going up against Rolen believing the chief might be working against him in some way could not have been anything short of crippling. The whole of Nick's posture from tail to ear tips seemed more confident now.

"Do we have another cruiser we can use?" Judy asked, trying to end the lull and change topics. "We'll probably be the last ones ready, given how sticky Night Howlers are."

"We've had enough officers quit that I doubt that is a problem," Bogo said, shrugging. "Get going. I'll meet you at the convention center shortly. Be careful with the radios—we don't know if Rolen has one of ours and is listening in. Use them sparingly, if at all."

"You're coming too?" Judy blurted out, regretting it immediately when Bogo glowered at her.

"I was a cop before I was chief, Hopps. You need all the help you can get. If my officers are putting themselves in danger, I would rather my last case be at their sides."

Huffing loudly, Bogo turned and marched out of the room, leaving Judy alone with Nick again. For a long moment, Judy watched Nick, wondering how best to talk to him. His eyes had gone distant, likely contemplating the risks they were about to face. If she let him keep wallowing in it, she knew he would only get worse.

"Let's get you in something that doesn't show off your chest to the whole city," Judy said, deciding to be a little silly and hoping it got through to Nick. Thankfully his smile told her she had chosen well.

"And here I thought you liked having me with my shirt off," he replied, smirking in that same silly way he had when trying to hustle her the day they had met. "It's been a couple days… Maybe I'm misremembering…"

Grabbing what was left of his tie, Judy pulled Nick down to her level and smiled as he puckered up for a kiss she had no intention of giving him, though it took him a few seconds to realize that. "And you'll get to keep guessing until we close this case, Slick. I don't know about you, but I have every intention of taking a few days off when this is done. Besides, showing off your fur to me is very different from showing it off to the whole city. I might have to get a little possessive."

"I can't imagine you being outside the precinct for that long. Whatever would you do with your time? Read a juicy bunny romance novel?"

Judy bumped Nick's nose with hers, making him smile all the more. "I have one thing I'd like to do…but it requires you. I probably shouldn't say more."

Nick's ears shot up even as his eyes narrowed. "And what's that? I'm open to sordid details."

"Well," she began, leading him out of the bullpen toward their offices to get him a new shirt. "Finnick mentioned you had some ideas on your old phone."

"He lies. Anything he said is a lie. He's a lying liar. Everyone knows that."

Smirking, Judy knew she had him thinking along the right lines, though she was not entirely sure what Finnick had been talking about when he had made that comment in the hospital. She might have to look at his phone after all. "Okay, well, I'll have to come up with things myself. I'd begin with taking you home. We'll get started in the front room of your apartment—"

"Couch is a nice choice. Floor as a last resort."

"—though I hope you like to get plenty dirty—"

"I don't even know what to say to that, but I'm all ears. Can I take notes, Carrots?"

"—and I'll even bring you a broom to finish cleaning that place up. It'll probably take the whole first day there before we move to cleaning the bedroom or bathroom."

Nick very nearly tripped, and she could hear his scowl as she brought him to their desk. She released him and turned around to see him openly pouting as he dug his spare shirt out of his desk drawers. "You really know how to kill a fox's daydreams, Fluff. Besides, why would I clean the place up? It'd lose all its charm. After a night of drinking, there's something reassuring about being able to sniff your way home."

Judy pulled herself onto Nick's desk and sat with her paws swinging off it while he tossed aside his torn and stained shirt. The longer she let Nick brood, the deeper his scowl grew, his attention shifting to the hall nearby that would take them to the locker rooms. When he began walking toward the locker rooms, she decided it was time to let him off the hook.

"I can't exactly stay over on any regular basis with the place in that condition, can I? Unless you want to keep doing the 'whenever Judy has time for me' thing. I get really busy with work, you know. Besides, if I get settled back into my apartment, I might not want to leave. Jack's great company. Also, I have a few juicy bunny romance novels to catch up on. There's a chance I might forget to come over at all."

Nick froze, and for a moment Judy thought she might have crossed a line that he was not ready for. She had hoped that passing it off as a bit of a joke would make it more palatable, but Nick's hesitation made her wonder if she had guessed wrong.

"I'm not sure that'll work, Carrots," he answered at last, smoothing the shirt in his paws. "I'm not okay with that at all."

Judy's heart sank to her toes at the matter-of-fact statement, and she could feel her ears blushing at her own stupidity. "It won't? I…I mean…if you want…I…um…"

"No, it won't work. The last couple days have shown me how short life is. I can't make another big mistake and rush into the wrong thing."

Judy's jaw dropped and she felt ready to run. It sounded as though he was trying to break up with her. She could not find words to even ask.

Nick walked over to stand between her knees, leaning over to press his forehead to hers as he rested his fingers on her waist. The mix of his callous statement and the closeness made Judy's skin prickle nervously. "Nope. I can't have you showing up here and there, then leaving me to wonder when you'll be back. You're going to have to make a choice. Not letting you get off easy, even if we might be facing certain death today."

Judy swallowed hard and tried to look him in the eyes. "I can't decide if I should laugh and say 'phrasing' or cry because you're making me worry about what's going to happen."

"That was kind of the goal," he admitted, smiling broadly enough to show off his teeth, his forehead still pressed to hers. "Cut you a deal. One-time offer."

"You know I hate it when you make it sound like I'm losing a bet."

Nick ignored her statement completely. "I clean up the apartment. Spotless, top to bottom. I might even do laundry. In return, you stay until you get bored with me, no matter long how that is. Plush fox and all."

"Are you asking me to move in with you, Nick?"

His ears flattening back, Nick put a paw to his chest in mock-offense. "Did I say those words? I don't think I did. Where's that carrot pen?"

Judy snorted and scowled at him, despite the racing of her heart and the desire to jump up and down excitedly. She was not going to let him get away with an entirely one-sided hustle, even if she loved it. Not today, and not anytime soon if she had any say in the matter. She would need to hustle right back.

"I agree," she answered, smiling her coyest smile up at him, offering a paw. "Shake on it?"

Nick's act fell away and he gave her a victorious smirk as he took her paw in his.

The moment Judy closed her fingers on his paw, she added, "And of course, no sex or other funny-business until the place is spotless. No matter how long that is. It's only fair. I wouldn't want to ruin my innocent fox. That includes in the locker room. We'll probably have to scrub each other to get all the serum off our fur, but we have to be professional about it."

Grumbling under his breath, Nick glared at her as he shook her paw. "Fine. We'll see who breaks first. I can be pretty sexy when I set my mind to it."

"You'll break first," she told him firmly, grinning and bouncing a little.

"I don't know…I'm pretty stubborn. A few stray wags of my tail and it's all over for a bunny."

Leaning toward him so she could be sure no one else heard her, Judy whispered near his ear, "Yes, but if you are trying to be stubborn about doing laundry, I'll have to wander around your place naked. Who has more willpower, you dumb fox? Think you'll last a day? Did I mention I like dancing to Gazelle's music? I could take up yoga. Maybe I'll need to act out reminders of what the Night Howler serum made me do earlier today. How good is your imagination…?"

Whining like a kicked wolf, Nick's shoulders dropped, and for a moment, Judy thought he might even go so far as to tuck his tail. "You win. I haven't even been back to the apartment and I'm already conceding defeat. You are an evil, vindictive, and overly sly bunny."

"Yes, but I'm your evil, vindictive, and overly sly bunny," she told him and kissed his cheek. "Let's get cleaned up. I want today behind us in a hurry."


	38. Chapter 9-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 9.2 – The Plan**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday Night – Zootopia Convention Center**

Walking slowly down the aisle between rows, Nick searched the crowd for any sign of Rolen. They had less than ten minutes until the show began, and after that he knew it would be harder to catch the bear in the noise and activity. Making matters more aggravating, Nick felt his damp fur squishing in his uniform every time he moved, as he had been forced to hurry through showering and changing, leaving precious little time to spend in front of the fur drier—most of which he had spent trying to watch Judy doing the same.

Nick turned to look at the next aisle over and saw Judy was equally frustrated, judging by her ears, which were not just up, but forward aggressively. That was all he could see of her over the audience, but it told him enough.

Pulling his cellphone from his belt, Nick checked the chatroom that the ZPD had decided to use for communications. It was slower than radios, but ensured Rolen would not be privy to their conversations. They needed any advantage they could get.

 _Mezzanine clear._

 _Lobby clear._

 _Parking garage clear._

 _Private booths clear._

 _Can't get his scent. Too many mammals and awful perfume. Gazelle smells nice tonight._

 _East main floor clear._

The last message had been from Judy. If all locations were actually confirmed clear, that left only Nick's portion of the main floor to report on. Scanning the crowd one more time, he came up empty again. Growling softly, he thumbed in his own confirmation that the west floor was clear.

 _Where are you?_ Nick asked himself. _Tranq rifle range is…dammit…one hundred feet? One hundred fifty? Can't be more than that. Really should have listened better in basic training._

Nick began limiting where he was looking to places that might be within range for the weapon Rolen had stolen from the ZPD. He knew there was a chance Rolen intended to use some other method of attack, but he had limited information to go on. If—and that was a big _if_ —Rolen intended to use the rifle, that narrowed the scope to the first forty rows or less on the main floor, at most two rows on the mezzanine, and the first few private booths.

From where he stood, Nick could survey nearly all of the places within range. The only other place he could imagine being close enough…

The cellphone buzzed again and Nick looked down to see _Backstage clear._

 _So much for that_ , he lamented, returning his attention to the crowds. _Plenty of bears, but not him. Maybe he's using someone? Another mammal he bullied into this like…don't say her name, Nick, even in your own head. This is no time to get angry._

Stopping in the middle of the aisle, Nick once again searched the crowd for anyone who even vaguely looked like Rolen. As before, he came up empty. It was infuriating, knowing Rolen should have dwarfed most of the other mammals in the crowd and been incredibly obvious. Even if he had managed to seat himself among other bears, anyone who had seen him before would not have too much trouble picking him out, especially if he had a ZPD uniform on.

Nick stopped where he was and began turning in a slow circle. He was thinking about this all wrong. If Rolen wanted to blend in, he would be using one of the seats, but there would be no way to easily wield a rifle from there. Nick needed to think as someone wanting to stay hidden. Someone who was sneaking in without paying, even if Rolen had a ticket.

 _Where would Finnick and I have hidden?_ he asked himself, eyes darting across the various service platforms along either wall, where employees could adjust lights and speakers. _Catwalks. Those are too visible. He might get seen early. He's going to want to take his time and do this right. He won't risk anything. He's too careful for that._

Leaning back, Nick looked straight up at the ceiling. There, a series of narrow catwalks ran between large lighting arrays. He could see movement up there, but it would be impossible to identify anyone, allowing either employees or sneaky foxes to sit right in the open without anyone being aware. That would be where Nick would hide, and it was the only place he could imagine Rolen being able to fit with his rifle. More importantly, it was within range of the stage and not one of the areas they had checked.

Nick quickly brought up his phone and typed in _Ceiling catwalks? Going up to check._

As Nick made his way up the aisle, he saw Judy in the other main floor aisle wave to get his attention. She pointed up and then to herself. She was going to join him. It was some relief to have backup, even if he really did not want either of them facing Rolen.

Making his way out of the main auditorium, Nick heard the announcer begin to do introductions as the doors closed behind him. That did not give them a lot of time, if their guesses that Gazelle was the target were true, and even less time to have her performance pulled if necessary. From what Nick had heard earlier, Bogo was running into trouble convincing her manager to call off the performance at all. Nick had to assume it would go on, leaving them about ten minutes to find Rolen before Gazelle walked out, and possibly up to four more minutes if he intended to shoot her at the end of the song.

The idea of Gazelle being the target of a tranquillizer gun still did not set well with Nick, and he continued mulling it over in the back of his mind as he and Judy raced up the back stairwell toward the catwalks. They were missing something big. Knocking out a public figure would not add to Rolen's attempts to make the city tear itself apart. There would be no riots, no panic—nothing at all beyond some anger that a well-loved music icon had been hurt. If Rolen had taken a regular rifle, Nick could understand, but a tranquillizer rifle could only fire vials of liquid…

Nick slid to a stop one floor before the entrance to the catwalks as his thoughts all fell into place.

"Nick?" Judy asked, panting as she stopped beside him. "What's wrong?"

"I know what he's doing," Nick said, though he really wished he were wrong. "He said he was almost out of Night Howler serum and he couldn't spare it for the ZPD."

Judy's eyes widened, and for a moment, Nick thought she was going to punch his arm out of nervous excitement. "He's going to dose someone onstage using the tranq rifle."

"Bingo. Even if it doesn't cause a small war, having Gazelle go insane on stage would destroy her reputation for talking sense into everyone. No one would listen to her. He's already said he's targeting heroes. Can you imagine what would happen if she attacked her dancers and hurt or killed one?"

"And who knows what her security would do," Judy added, shaking her head as she started up the last few steps, with Nick following close behind. "Bogo nearly got shot by one of them, even after flashing his badge. Those are some seriously jumpy boars. Too many people on edge with weapons in too small of a place. They might shoot everyone to protect her, savage or not."

"Let's hope he's up here, then. We're almost out of time."

They finished climbing the last few stairs, and Nick grabbed the handle of the door to the catwalks as Judy drew her pistol. Once she gave him a ready nod, he yanked the door open and she stepped through, allowing him to quickly follow.

The catwalks were narrow runways along the ceiling of the auditorium that hung from thin metal cables that allowed them to sway ever so slightly as Nick and Judy moved onto them. Mesh netting was hung between the metal planks under their paws and on the rails at slightly higher than chest height on Nick. Below, he could see about fifty feet of open air—making his skin feel sweaty as he realized he was not entirely comfortable with heights—and the audience far below, with several lighting rigs just beneath the catwalks. The runway they stood on ran about thirty feet, before branching to either side, leading to a sound booth one way and another room on the other, though neither had a door of any kind. Lighting rigs and wiring lined the end of the T-shaped platform, though no other mammals were visible.

A rumble of applause erupted below as the announcer began speaking about Gazelle. They were almost out of time. Another minute, maybe two.

"Clear to the end," Judy whispered, advancing, her paws far steadier on the platform than Nick's. "Get to the tee and we'll figure out whether either side is likely."

Nick had trouble keeping his breathing steady and forced himself to keep his attention split between Judy's tail and the end of the platform. He felt sick and unsteady on his paws, trying not to look down at the sharp fall that awaited if he somehow managed to slide through the netting—even if his rational mind told him that was all but impossible. Going over the rail was about the only possible way he could fall, but being able to see the drop-off made it feel far more likely. Somehow, navigating the rainforest district was fine, but the walkway felt all wrong.

They hurried across the platform to the fork. From there, Nick could see the stage below, and the announcer was already walking away as the curtains began to move. Their time was up. Gazelle would be on stage within seconds.

Nick turned to his right to look into the sound booth. The interior was dark, aside from various lit consoles, but he could faintly make out the shapes of four mammals on the floor. With no prevailing smell of blood, he hoped that meant they had merely been knocked out. At the front of the room, the glass windows that allowed the sound workers to see the stage were intact and closed.

A tap to Nick's hip let him know Judy had something. Looking her way, he saw she had her weapon trained on a large shadowed figure in the store room. At their range it would be tricky to hit him, but Nick knew exactly who he was looking at long before he saw the barrel of a rifle slide out one of the windows and aim toward the stage.

"Go!" Nick hissed, and Judy started closing the gap, with Nick right at her tail. A few more steps and they could fire.

Below, Nick could see movement on the stage as he ran. From the center of the stage, a platform rose up as lights from the side walls swept in to encompass Gazelle and her four tigers. Several portions of the stage were unlit, as the lights near Nick and Judy were not being manned. Just as Judy reached the doorway, music filled the auditorium and the tigers were in motion, with Gazelle still turned away, holding her mic.

Dropping to one knee to clear Nick's line of fire, Judy began shooting her tranquillizer pistol at Rolen. Two loud pops from Judy's weapon were followed by a louder bang from Rolen's and a shot from Nick's. All three darts hit with a solid _thunk_ and Nick turned his attention to the stage as Judy finished firing her remaining two darts. There was nothing more he could do without firing live ammo, and he had to hope the bear's shots had missed their intended targets. Continuing to fire tranquillizer darts ran the risk of killing him and would not speed up their effect.

On the stage, one of the tigers had lost his balance and Nick was fairly certain he saw a gleam of a tranquillizer dart in his leg. As he watched, Rolen got another shot off, hitting Gazelle and knocking her to her knees. A third dart hit another of the tigers. The fourth and final dart clattered harmlessly against the stage itself.

The crowd erupted into panic as boars rushed the stage to protect Gazelle, weapons drawn. Within seconds they had the stage secured. Leading several ZPD officers up the stairs to the stage, Officer Cannus was already arguing with the boars as he tried to reach Gazelle. Nick could see the conflict was going to take some time and they only had minutes before the three mammals would turn savage.

"They've got that covered," Nick told Judy, returning his attention to Rolen. "Is he…?"

To Nick's horror Rolen was not only still standing, but calmly setting aside his rifle as he turned to face them. Even in the shadowed room, Nick could see the hateful eyes staring back at him. Lumbering slowly out onto the platform, Rolen appeared entirely unharmed—and then Nick noticed the heavy ZPD body armor he wore, complete with five tranquillizer darts protruding from it. From knee to neck, there was nowhere Rolen was not covered in some degree of padding. Along the bottom of his armor, Nick also noticed a widespread stain of blood that had run down one pant leg, likely from Spetz's shots earlier.

"You two never give up, do you?" Rolen asked, flexing his paws and making certain that Nick could see his claws. "I count three shots left, plus your service pistols. Three mammals on that stage were shot. How long before pandemonium erupts? What is your priority? The crowds below or me? You cannot solve every problem in time. Your move."

Even as Rolen spoke, chaos had begun to erupt across both the stage and the audience. Nick could see hundreds of mammals running over one another to exit the auditorium, while a half-dozen ZPD officers had rushed the stage and were in an actual fistfight with Gazelle's bodyguards. Through it all, no one was dealing with Gazelle or her dancers, all of whom were huddled at the back of the stage, unable to escape. Despite the distance, Nick could see the fear on all of their faces.

To Nick's surprise Judy holstered her weapon and drew her regular pistol. She had made up her mind, and he could not fault her. Reluctantly he did the same, raising his handgun toward Rolen, who had yet to budge from the doorway.

"There are only two ways this ends for you," Rolen said, though his attention drifted briefly to the fight on the stage. "First, you fire and I will kill you both. I might hesitate if you had larger weapons, but those won't kill me quickly, if you can even hurt me. Second, you let me leave and I spare you."

Nick felt his resolve waver. Even if he emptied his whole clip into Rolen's chest, it would not even slow him. At best it might leave bruises, and at worst, Rolen would walk away without even a memento to remember them by. If Nick or Judy could hit him in the head while he was moving, they might be able to stop him. Given that he wore bulletproof padding down his arms, all it would take would be raising one arm over his face and Rolen would be almost unstoppable with their small pistols. This was going to turn into a hand-to-hand fight in seconds, and Nick knew how that would end. A fox and a bunny against one of the largest bears in the city was going to be messy.

Judy was not deterred, though. "Rolen Ursius, you are under arrest for murder, conspiracy, theft…"

The dour glare from Rolen somehow did not keep Judy from continuing. Instead Rolen turned his attention to Nick as Judy kept listing charges.

"Unlike some others, you are not stupid, Wilde," Rolen said, raising his voice to be heard over Judy. "She is yours as far as I'm concerned. You still have tranq darts. Put her on the ground and walk away with her. You have my word that I will not lay a paw on either of you if you obey and rein her in. Once this goes to violence, I will kill anyone who fights me, whether that is just her or both of you. This is your one chance to save her."

They all remained still for a minute, Judy with her finger on the trigger of her weapon, while Rolen stared back at Nick, daring him to act. Slowly Nick eased his finger away from his weapon's trigger, tilting the barrel upward to show Rolen he did not intend to fire. Nick could only hope if Rolen moved, he could aim and fire quickly enough that the movement would not matter too much.

"Remove her," Rolen demanded and for the first time, Judy looked away, turning her eyes on Nick.

"What are you doing?" she asked, suddenly looking nervous. "Nick!"

Pulling his off paw away from the pistol, Nick slowly brought the weapon out to his side so the movement would not be misinterpreted and slid it into its holster behind his hip. That placed his paw near his tranquillizer gun, which Nick brought his fingers down on, but did not draw.

"Nick…please," Judy begged, inching back away from Rolen on her knees. "Think about those who've died."

"I am."

"Nick, think about your mother. Think about Jack. He will do this again. No matter the danger. No matter what happens to either of us, we have to act."

Rolen smiled grimly but remained otherwise motionless. He watched Nick and waited for him to take Judy down. It was a foregone conclusion that it would happen.

"Judy," Nick said slowly, keeping his eyes on Rolen as his fingers brushed his tranquillizer pistol, "you're the most important thing in my life. I am thinking about what might happen."

The nervousness in Judy's eyes turned to panic, her ears flattened out, and she began to back away from Rolen faster. "Don't do this, Nick! This is our job. We swore oaths. We have to take risks to protect others."

"You're absolutely right," he answered, turning his attention back to Rolen, who had yet to move. "We have to protect the ones we love."

Judy looked around franticly, clearly trying to decide how to stop him without letting Rolen escape. She continued inching backward until she was alongside Nick, making it far more difficult for him to shoot her if and when he drew his tranquillizer pistol.

"Nick, I love you too, but we can't let him go," Judy warned, her fear fading into an angry resolve. That had been what Nick had been waiting to see. He needed to know she was that determined and willing to risk it all. "Fight with me, not against me!"

Sliding his fingers back, Nick hooked both the handle of his regular pistol and the large-mammal handcuffs he kept at the back of his belt. Drawing both together, he shifted the cuffs to his other paw and threw them to Rolen as he raised the pistol. "I'd love to think letting you go would keep her safe," Nick explained as the cuffs slid to a stop inches from Rolen's toes. "I know better. No one's safe if you're still free. Put on the cuffs and surrender."

Growling softly, Rolen rolled his eyes and looked down to the stage, drawing Nick's attention too.

Below, the arguments between stagehands, the boar bodyguards, and the ZPD had escalated horribly. With time short before the Night Howler serum kicked in, the ZPD was no longer negotiating. One by one, the boars were being gunned down with tranquillizer pistols, and as Nick watched, two boars opened fire on the ZPD. Spetz went down with a gunshot to the upper leg. All the while, Gazelle and the four tigers continued to huddle, trying to avoid the violence moving their way, while media filmed the whole thing.

"Your time is up," Rolen said, turning his gaze back to Nick, as though Judy was not even there.

Everything seemed to slow to a crawl as Rolen launched into motion. Nick heard the booming cracks from both his and Judy's pistols, though Rolen did not seem to notice, even when Nick saw blood spray from the side of his head. It took only three long strides and he reached Judy, grabbing her in both massive paws with a roar.

Nick screamed, knowing Judy was shouting something—or screaming herself—as she was hoisted off the platform, Rolen's paw wrapping entirely around her upper body.

Twisting in his grip, Judy managed to land several solid kicks against Rolen's shoulder as he turned to avoid Nick's next few shots. Nick could feel the impacts of the kicks through the platform, but Rolen did not drop her or waver at all. She even managed to bite into his thumb, still with no reaction from Rolen.

All Nick could do was keep firing, until his pistol clicked as the last bullet was gone. In that moment Rolen hurled Judy over the railing, and the last glimpse Nick had of her was as she slammed into one of the large stage lights and then tumbled out of sight in a shower of metal and glass.

"She had no worth," Rolen growled, rounding on Nick, baring all of his teeth as he advanced. "You, as a predator, should have known better than to fight me. You, I will make suffer."


	39. Chapter 9-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 9.3 – The Plan**

 **July 20** **th** **, Wednesday Night – Zootopia Convention Center**

Nick's whole world seemed to collapse in those few seconds, as he watched Judy tumble out of sight. He strained his ears to hear her hit the floor far below, but with the roar of the crowd and the fighting on the stage, he could not pick up anything beyond the shattering of glass somewhere. One second she was at his side, depending on him, and the next she was gone. There was no one to blame but himself.

"Three years I've planned this," Rolen was saying, though Nick barely heard him. "When I heard about the hero bunny cop, I knew that sooner or later we would be standing here. I applaud your dedication to your family, but I think now you understand. One mammal's agenda can take them away in a heartbeat. This is what you city did to me. My loss is yours now, Wilde. The cameras needed to see her die. No one will watch as you do."

Nick's breathing was erratic, and he could not take his eyes off the last place he had seen Judy. His heart pounded as he struggled to make sense of any of what was happening. Slowly his mind registered that Rolen loomed over him, deadly claws directly in Nick's line of sight.

"The bunny didn't know her place, but I can see you understand," Rolen said, raising one massive paw. "Just stand there and die with some dignity."

The sight of Judy going over the railing burned into his brain and the certainty of his own death so close at hand, Nick did the only thing his mind could manage: he snapped.

Snarling, Nick dropped to all fours and dove under the paw that would have torn him in half. He came up alongside Rolen and raked his claws across the larger mammal's leg, leaving ragged scratches that hardly even bled. Undaunted, Nick leaped onto Rolen's back and scrambled up the bear's armor, using his claws to hold on when Rolen twisted and fought to toss him off. He quickly reached Rolen's neck and drove his fangs into the thin flesh there, tasting fur and blood.

Rolen roared and reached back, his claws scraping against Nick's uniform briefly as Rolen thrashed about, trying to free himself.

Through it all, Nick bit down as hard as he could, feeling his teeth dig deep into muscle. His jaw felt as though it was being dislocated, but he could not make himself let go. Instead he fought even harder, locking his claws into Rolen's fur and tugging with his neck to cause more damage. He knew it was hopeless—Rolen's size meant that even Nick's brutal attack was doing remarkably little real harm—but it was all he had left. Nothing else would make a difference or assuage the guilt that lingered at the edge of his consciousness for failing Judy. He had to be a savage and hope he could accomplish something or both of their deaths would mean nothing.

All at once, the wild rampage ended. Rolen managed to twist hard enough that he got his paw on Nick. With a bloodied wrench, Rolen tore Nick away and threw him to the platform on his back, where he gasped for breath around the acrid taste of blood that filled his mouth.

"You are a true predator," Rolen panted, grinning wickedly as he marched over to stand above Nick, wiping at the free-flowing blood on his neck with one paw. "I am proud of you, Wilde. You are willing to die fighting. Even in my lands, there were few who would put up such a fight. You and I are not so different. I think now you might actually understand what I went through. Another place and time, you would have served my family well."

Nick lay back on the platform and stared up at the auditorium ceiling, waiting for the first strike to come. He doubted he would survive even a single swing from Rolen. With the grief at the edge of his consciousness threatening to overcome him, that was just as well. He wanted things to end before he could fully process what had happened. Pain, he could take, but knowing his decision had doomed Judy was not something he could handle. Each second that passed, he saw another way that he could have died in her place.

Gunfire erupted nearby, and Nick sat up in surprise. Fifteen shots went off in rapid succession, hitting Rolen along the side of his body armor, where there was less protection, and directly over his previous wounds from Spetz. With a grunt Rolen dropped to his knees, wheezing as he clutched his side and gasped for air.

Farther up the platform, Chief Bogo marched steadily down the catwalk, his steaming pistol still aimed at Rolen even as he reached for a fresh clip on his belt.

"Are you okay, Wilde?" the chief called, sliding the clip into his weapon. He stopped about a dozen feet away from them both.

"I'm alive," Nick answered, though he could not make his shaking legs support him and had to lay where he was. "The others? Did you…what about Judy?"

Bogo huffed angrily. "I saw her go over, but that's all I know. As for Gazelle, there was no Howler serum in the shots. No tranq either. Two of Gazelle's dancers got injured, Gazelle herself got arrested on television, and there were five wounded in the fight to get to them—all with no serum involved. Everyone would have been fine."

Laughing, Rolen pulled one paw away from his side, and Nick could see a great deal of blood on his fur. "I told you what I would do. This city will tear itself apart. Consider this my gift after what your people did to mine. They will blame Night Howlers and then learn that was just an excuse. In the end they will look to one another for the violence that is consuming the city. Distrust will spread. Neighbors will kill one another. No one in this city will trust the ZPD again and the more you try to enforce law, the more it will elude you."

Nick felt sick as he began to fully understand what all had just happened. Mammals had died—Judy had died—all to stage a fake attack. Rolen had gotten what he wanted, even at the risk of it getting him killed.

"You will be praised for your work here," Rolen went on, nodding first at Nick and then at Bogo. "The last of the Ursius line, killed by the ZPD. No matter what else happens, that will be remembered. The ZBI has tried more times than I care to count."

Bogo took another step closer and drew a pair of cuffs off his belt. "We don't kill if we don't have to. Put on the cuffs. We'll get you medical care and a proper trial."

"A trial?" Rolen growled, blood covering the bear's teeth. He was bleeding internally, though he was handling it far better than Nick would have in his position. "The same way your people gave mine a chance at surviving? We both know how this ends. If you don't kill me, the ZBI will before I go to trial. I chose my fate and I accept it. Kill me and give me the death of a true predator. Let me die a warrior."

Ignoring his protests, Bogo lay the cuffs down at Rolen's side. "Wilde, on your paws. Rolen Ursius, stay very still while Officer Wilde cuffs you or I'll put a bullet in your skull. You have three seconds to comply. I'm done arguing."

Nick got slowly to his knees and found himself staring into Rolen's eyes. He had expected hatred or madness, but instead he saw a deep sadness. Like recognized like. The loss that had shaped Rolen was the same sort that now lingered at the edges of Nick's mind as Judy going over the rail replayed over and over. There was no longer any fear, as there was nothing left to lose. Nick already knew what Rolen was going to do and he struggled to react before that happened.

Lurching to his paws, Rolen tried to rush Bogo, even as the gun went off. The first shot hit Rolen just below his jaw, near where Nick had bitten him earlier. Despite the snarl of pain, Rolen slammed into Bogo with enough force that Nick felt the impact through the shaking of the catwalk.

Nick finally made it to his paws as the catwalk rocked again when Bogo and Rolen began exchanging blows. He tried to reach for the cuffs on the walkway, thinking to at least cuff Rolen's ankles to give Bogo a fighting chance. To Nick's surprise Bogo's next swing dropped Rolen to his knees. Gasping, Rolen nearly fell forward as he appeared to struggle to stay upright.

They all remained still for no more than a few seconds, but the relief from violence seemed to drag it out far longer in Nick's mind. As Bogo grabbed for Rolen's right paw to slap cuffs on him, Rolen made one last lunge. This time he swept his left arm outward, his long claws shredding the support wires and the netting alongside them.

The entire catwalk buckled as the wires broke, and Nick dove sideways to grab the railing on the other side. Nearby, Bogo managed to snap the cuff on Rolen's other wrist just before the whole platform tilted under their combined weight. Before the catwalk completely rolled, Bogo lifted Rolen so he could clip the other end of the cuffs onto the railing, effectively keeping him from falling unless everything collapsed. With a loud grunt, Bogo punched Rolen hard enough that Rolen slumped limply.

Then all hell broke loose as more support wires snapped.

Nick's grip on the rail was all that kept him from falling as the catwalk dropped several feet and rolled sideways. Though the walkway did not completely fall into the seating far below, Nick watched as one after another of the support wires snapped under Bogo and Rolen's weight.

Frantically looking around, Nick realized he had seen precious little of the layout from where he had been standing. Beneath the forward-most section—where he now hung precariously—a partial wire netting had been constructed, likely to catch any falling equipment before it could kill someone below. Nick doubted that netting was really meant to hold not only the platform, but also two one-ton mammals, meaning it probably would not hold long—if at all—once Bogo and Rolen hit it. Still, that was not what caught Nick's eye as he dangled ten feet above the netting.

Hanging in the mesh below him and slightly off to one side was a collection of broken lights and cabling. Among those, Nick could see Judy, though she was not moving. If the platform continued to break away and fall, it would come down near or on her, regardless of whether the netting held or tore. Directly over her was the section of platform where Rolen hung from his cuffs and Bogo clung to the railing to keep from tumbling away.

 _Okay, you've got this, Nick_ , he told himself, looking up at the rail he clung to. _Fear of heights. Check. Fear of falling. Check. Fear of falling_ again _after that time in the Rainforest District. Check. Fear of having Bogo fall on you. Check. Fear of losing Judy for real_ …

Nick smiled grimly and let go.

The fall very nearly made Nick vomit, which would not have been ideal, tumbling head over tail. Thankfully he landed on the netting a good forty feet off the auditorium floor. To his surprise the net had very little give and felt as though he had fallen on a rubber mat that only absorbed a little of the impact.

When Nick tried to stand, he slipped and his whole leg went through one of the gaps in the net. Looking back to Judy, he realized that with her smaller size, she could actually have slid through the net. She was being held on it by a large chunk of the light she had hit on the way down, which lay across her back. The awkward way she had landed left her waist down hanging through one of the gaps in the netting. If she moved much, she would tumble onto the chairs below.

Nick turned his attention back to the catwalk above him and found Bogo was watching him carefully, even as he was struggled to pull himself onto one of the undamaged sections of the platform. Rolen still hung from the railing, unconscious, but if only he fell into the net, it was far less likely that the whole thing might collapse.

Rolling onto his knees, Nick scrambled to where Judy hung, his paws repeatedly slipping through the gaps along the way. As he got to her, he reached to move the broken section of lighting that held her in place, only to have the entire area bounce and sway as something landed behind him. For a moment he thought that whatever had fallen had done no damage, but then the netting began to shift, slowly at first and gaining speed as the end tore away from the ceiling.

Looking back, Nick saw that a section of the catwalks had broken away and landed on the netting, cutting through a ten-foot-wide area. The entire safety net would not fall—at least, not yet—but where Nick and Judy lay would soon hang vertically, with a large gap for them to tumble through if they did not hang on tightly.

Nick returned his attention to Judy and saw the slow fall of the netting was already a threat. The metal atop Judy had shifted and she was sliding through, even as she started to open her eyes, dazed.

Diving forward, Nick barely managed to keep his own footing as he reached for Judy as she fell through the net. He was a little too slow and knew he would never quite get to her, so Nick reached through the netting to his shoulder and caught Judy by the hind paw as she tumbled. Panting, he remained still for a few seconds, trying to ensure he had a good grip before moving again. As he did, the last of the netting behind him fell, leaving Nick standing upright, clinging by one paw and his toes, with Judy on the other side of the net, hanging upside down from his paw.

"Nick?" Judy asked, sounding disoriented and more than a little scared. When Nick looked down at her, she was staring at the auditorium seating below them. "Where are we, and why can I see the floor?"

"All good questions," Nick grunted in reply, pulling Judy in toward him. With only one paw on her and the strain against his partially healed injuries, Nick found he had precious little strength. His arm soon began to tremble as he tried to get his other paw through the net to reach her. "Let's wait on story time until after we aren't going to fall to our deaths."

One of Nick's hind paws slipped, and for a moment, he thought he had lost his grip on Judy too. With only one hind paw still on the net and his arms through it keeping him from falling, he finally got his other forepaw on Judy's leg and began the slow effort of righting her. Then he held her tightly in both arms through the net, face-to-face, as he adjusted his hind paws to keep them both stable.

"I'm not really complaining," Judy mumbled, her eyes drifting. From what Nick could see, she had blood on the fur of her head, likely hinting at a concussion. "I appreciate the hug. Why are we doing it up here?"

"Fox's gotta come up with creative ways to keep his bunny interested in him," Nick said, grinning. Somehow the fear of falling mattered far less with her awake. "Thought this would hold your attention."

Judy smiled weakly and thumped her face against his shoulder through the netting. "I may throw up…on you."

"Always the romantic."

Though she appeared entirely unable to focus on any one thing, Judy squinted up at the catwalks above them, where Nick could see Rolen still hung precariously. Not far from him, Bogo had gotten to a stable section of the scaffolds and was working to pull Rolen toward him.

Judy soon turned her attention back to Nick. "Now what?" she asked, reaching through to grab onto his uniform, sharing a little of her weight and helping stabilize him. "I may not be all here, but I know I don't want to go down the fast way."

Nick twisted to look around the auditorium and soon spotted Fangmeyer working with several convention center employees to bring a hydraulic lift down the aisle toward them. Everyone else had been cleared out, giving them plenty of room to work. It would not be a quick rescue, but they were trying.

"Got it under control, Fluff. Just hang in there. Pun intended."

A sharp snap made Nick wish he had kept his mouth shut. Looking up, he saw that several of the attachments to the ceiling had pulled free. Turning to check below them, Nick found the platform pieces that had fallen were all tangled in the netting, their weight slowly breaking the remaining bolts that kept it attached. It might not be a ton of weight, but with half the net already ripped away, the remaining supports were not going to last long.

"We may get the fast way after all," Nick said, pulling Judy tightly to him. Forty feet was almost sure to kill them, but if he could shield her from the impact, she might survive. "Keep looking at me. Don't look down."

Another snap shook the netting, and Nick forced himself to meet Judy's eyes. She was still dizzy and her nose twitched spastically, but she kept her attention on him.

"No matter what happens…," Nick began, only to hear a loud crunch as the last bolts gave way. Putting his forehead to Judy's, he partially wrapped his body around hers in the vain attempt to possibly spare her life when they hit the ground below.

The netting dropped about two feet and then stopped sharply. Nick held his breath a little longer, before opening his eyes to find Judy apparently as confused as he felt.

Glancing up, Nick saw the netting hung not from the ceiling, but from Bogo's trembling arm. He had jumped over the rail of the catwalk and had a hold on the railing with one hoof and the netting with the other. The strain was evident even from ten feet away, but somehow the chief kept them steady.

Below them, the rescue crew was slowly raising a lift to reach them. So long as Bogo could hold them, they were safe.

"See," Nick told Judy, smiling as he buried his face in the fur near her ear. "Told you I had a plan."


	40. Chapter 9-4

**The Pursuit, Chapter 9.4 – The Plan**

 **July 20** **th** **, Late Wednesday Night – Zootopia Convention Center**

"You sure you're ready for this?"

Judy nodded and rubbed at her head, wishing the spinning sensation would fade. She still could not remember anything between Rolen rushing at her and waking up with Nick far off the floor, but he had tried to fill her in. It felt like the details would not quite stay in her mind, no matter how hard she tried. From what the medical team had said, she did have a mild concussion and her short-term memory might not be reliable.

"I'm sure," she answered, looking around at the officers who remained on the stage with them.

The fight over Gazelle had been contained once everyone was certain there was no Night Howlers involved, but the anger was still palpable. Gazelle's bodyguards were all cuffed and sitting to one side of the stage, aside from one who was still being treated by medical workers. Those boars all glowered at the ZPD officers, clearly blaming them for the situation, including the minor injuries Gazelle and Nimr had received in the tussle.

The ZPD was faring far worse, and Judy could recognize why from their faces without having to ask. The officers blamed themselves for the violence, including having to attack innocent civilians to ensure everyone was safe. That conflict between duty and what was right had done considerable damage, which appeared to be the intent.

That thought led Judy's attention to the media, still on the auditorium's main floor. They had stopped filming after things had calmed down, though she could hear them occasionally calling in reports to update their stations.

"How bad is it out there?" she asked at length, feeling her ears sink lower as she thought over how many riots had begun even before that night.

"It's…it's really bad," Bogo admitted, seated near Nick. "If you thought things were ugly with Bellwether, you've seen nothing. There's calls to segregate the city as a whole. There've been calls for mandatory tagging of predators and the immediate dissolving of the ZPD. I've tried talking to them, and it only gets them more riled up. We even had Lionheart do a speech from prison, and that was worse."

Judy put her face in her paws and tried to think, but her mind felt like thick soup. "Has Gazelle spoken to them? They usually listen to her."

"I have not" came a familiar voice nearby, startling Judy. Looking up, she saw the singer had taken a seat on the stage nearby, her stage shoes tossed aside, while Judy had been talking to Nick and Bogo. For once, Gazelle appeared as casual as everyone else, making it all too easy to overlook her in the chaos. "I wanted to wait until you and your partner could join me. Faith in the leadership of Zootopia will mean more if we show unity."

Judy was still not certain she could stand without vomiting, but she nodded in reluctant agreement anyway. Looking back at Nick, she could see the worry in his eyes, even if he would not say anything to discourage her. He knew better than to tell her no.

"Nick, can you help me walk?" Judy asked, and Nick very nearly leaped to her side. "Let's get this done with so we can get everyone to the hospital. Did they take Rolen to the city jail yet?"

"Can't," Bogo confessed gruffly. "Media has all the ways out of here blocked. We have to take him through the cameras. May as well move as a group. He's got enough tranq in him that he's barely conscious. No threat right now, but I don't want to count on that for long. If I put more in him, he could die before we could get him to the hospital and if I let it go too long, he'll wake up. Broke my hoof hitting him once. Not sure I can do it again."

"I don't think you should be doing any speeches today, Fluff," Nick said somewhat softly, putting both paws on her arm. "They want you laying down and watched for a day."

Judy patted Nick's paw and smiled up at him. "No speeches. We just need to walk out as a group to show that we're not at war with Gazelle. After that, I'll be happy to lay down and rest."

"Whatever you want, Judy."

Leaning on Nick's arm for balance, Judy got up slowly. The whole stage seemed to rock, and she stumbled and would have fallen without Nick's support. Definitely no speeches.

"I'll have the cruisers ready out front," Bogo told them, getting to his hooves and picking up his radio. "We only have to make it through about twenty feet of media and we can go. Let's make it quick."

To Judy's surprise the ZPD and Gazelle's dancers formed up around them, even as a staggering, bleeding, and dazed Rolen was brought out in cuffs to stand beside them. Soon the large group closed ranks, leaving the ZPD in a tight ring around the outside, with the four tiger dancers inside around Gazelle, Bogo, Rolen, Nick, and Judy.

"Out the main doors as a unit," Bogo ordered, and the group began moving into the back halls of the auditorium toward the front hall and the entrance doors. "We have two armored vans out front and five cruisers. Load up the prisoner and we clear out the moment Gazelle is done talking. Be on alert. No one's going to be happy to see us out there."

They marched slowly through the building, their pace set by Judy and Rolen. Every so often Judy found herself staring up at the massive bear beside her and wondering how long the sedative would keep him docile. If and when he broke free, she and Nick would be the first things he saw, and she could not imagine him being happy about it. Even with Bogo leading Rolen things could go badly in a hurry. Her concerns only got worse as Bogo passed Rolen to Officer Capra.

The front doors of the convention center came into sight, and Judy could feel the tension rise in the group. Without a word Gazelle marched to the front, taking a spot alongside Bogo so that she would be among the first seen by the media and any rioters outside. Right behind her, the four dancers lined up to protect her, despite most of them looking as though they had been beaten severely during the earlier fights.

"We step out and Gazelle will do the talking," Bogo said, nearing the doors. "I'll say a few words, and then we go for the vans. I don't intend to be stopped for more than a minute."

As one the group pushed through the outer doors, and Judy felt as though she were more surrounded there than she had been inside. Thousands of mammals filled the streets, waving handmade signs that demanded a change in leadership, the banishment of predators—or prey—and various hateful statements about the ZPD itself. At the first glimpse of the group, the street went silent and a few dozen cameras turned toward Gazelle.

"People of Zootopia," Gazelle began, any nervousness left from the attacks vanishing instantly as she spread her arms and walked forward. "This is not the way…"

The immediate response from the crowd was filled with venomous hatred toward the ZPD. They surged forward, blocking all routes to the ZPD vehicles and stopping the group from leaving. Judy even heard shouts about "filthy prey" directed at Gazelle and a few demands for her to go back to wherever she was born—which, ironically, was about three blocks away, if Judy recalled correctly.

"Zootopia! Listen to me!" Gazelle was shouting, trying to restore some semblance of calm, but Judy could feel the fear in the air. "We must work together! This is over! Whatever you thought was happening between myself and the ZPD is done. There is no anger between us to be fighting about."

The sense of disaster was oppressive beyond belief and Judy tightened her grip on Nick's arm. Slowly he pulled her close and hugged her, using his body to shield her from watching the chaos of the street around them. The group was going nowhere. All they could do was try to wait out the crowd.

"This…this is the Zootopia you all cherish!" Gazelle shouted, her words amplified by the camera crews that had come partway up the steps of the convention center. "You all demand that we destroy what we have worked generations for, while these two stand before you, embodying everything that you now cast aside! If they can do this, what is wrong with you? Natural enemies with no fear stand before you. Cast aside your own fear and we will recover as we always do!"

Judy's mind did not initially grasp that Gazelle might be speaking of them until the lights of cameras abruptly illuminated both her and Nick. Going wide-eyed, Judy could only stare at Nick's shirt and wonder if he was as scared as she was. Judy moved a little farther into the crook of Nick's arm, trying to hide.

"Turn!" Gazelle whispered, tugging at Nick's arm. "They can't see you both."

His paws dragging with Judy balanced on them, Nick adjusted how they were standing so the city could see both of their profiles. Immediately Judy buried her face in his sleeve, trying to cover her eyes and disappear from the thousands of startled faces she saw in a brief glimpse. Nearby, Gazelle was still talking to the crowd, but Judy could not make herself listen as the judgement of the whole city came down on her.

"This ought to be pretty interesting around the watercooler tomorrow," Nick said softly, smiling down at Judy. He adjusted his arms around her, preventing her from hiding. "Think you should have talked to your parents sooner?"

Judy frantically tried to look anywhere but the crowd and found herself fixated by Nick's face and those warm green eyes. There, she was able to escape from all the anger being spouted so close by. His stubborn calm was infectious, and she soon was able to smile back at him.

"We're just hugging," Judy offered nervously. "I can find a way to talk them out of panicking until I can explain. Even when they were our age, hugging between predator and prey wasn't strictly illegal."

Nick turned his head to look at Gazelle, then out at the crowds. The coy smirk told Judy that Nick wanted to do something, and she wondered what he was up to. Returning his attention to her, he asked, "Time to redirect all this anger and confusion. Please don't hate me, Carrots."

"I wouldn't—"

Leaning down, Nick kissed her, and Judy felt as though the world had gone silent. Perhaps it did, given the mood of the crowds. Moment by moment, the fear drained from her, and she reached up and caught the back of Nick's head, holding him close as she maintained the kiss. Slowly Nick pulled away when the kiss had gone on long enough that any shock value had since passed.

"Sly fox," she managed to whisper, still a little dizzy from the combination of the surprise kiss and the concussion.

"Don't sound so happy with yourself," Nick said, smiling crookedly. "I'm pretty sure your parents will see that on television."

Judy's ears fell and her eyes went wide at that thought. "I was wrong. I do hate you, Nick."

"I'll make it up to you. I promise."

"I know you will," she answered, sighing. "You get to explain it to them."

Nick's grin faded to panic. "Me? I still don't have all the feeling in my hip from the taser…I…"

Looking around, Judy saw confusion, disgust, and begrudging acceptance filled the faces of the mammals in the street. If nothing else, they were staring at Nick and Judy hard enough that they did not seem to notice Bogo and the other officers rush Rolen into a waiting van. Soon only Gazelle and her dancers, as well as Nick, Judy, and Bogo were left on the stairs.

"Time to get me out of here, Slick," Judy insisted, as Bogo came up to help them and Gazelle finished the speech that Judy had all but ignored. "I think it's time for an overdue vacation."


	41. Chapter 10-1

**The Pursuit, Chapter 10.1 – Brief Closure**

 **July 25** **th** **, Monday Afternoon – Savannah Central**

"No…no…I said, no! Just calm down!" Judy insisted, trying not to yell.

She threw her paws in the air and stalked around the small apartment again, waiting for Jack to take a deep breath and stop wringing his paws nervously. His panic had been ongoing for almost two hours and she was beginning to see a perverse wisdom in Nick having jokingly told her to just slap her brother until he calmed down the last time he had gone through this.

Jack was a wreck, and Judy understood, even if she wanted to throttle him. For several days Jack had stayed with Nick's mother at a safe house of Mister Big's, up until they had Rolen secured in the city jail and were certain the riots were somewhat under control. That had proven to be the easy part. Getting life to return to normal had been far harder. Judy had managed, but Jack still expected another attack at any moment. Honestly the whole city was doing about as well as Jack.

"But there are all kinds of mammals walking around," Jack muttered, tugging at his own ears. "Anything could happen."

From next door Pronk yelled back, "You could get attacked by sketchy foxes. It happens. Look what happened to your sister."

"Shut up!" Bucky replied.

"No, you shut up!" Pronk shouted in reply, before both went quiet.

"You got kidnapped while I lived here," Judy argued, realizing immediately that her words were not entirely comforting. "Clearly me staying doesn't change anything. You're just as safe now as you were before."

The panicked stare she got in reply would have been funny if it were not for the fact that Jack had already delayed her by more than an hour. She should have already been across the district, and the look on Jack's face told her that she was not likely to leave anytime soon.

"What if he comes back after me? He showed up here once. You might not even be at the sidewalk before he's here," Jack rambled.

Sighing, Judy pulled out her phone and checked the messages she had gotten from Bogo. She had chosen that morning to leave Jack alone on the premise that Rolen was being moved into ZBI custody and would no longer be a threat to anyone, but Jack was not backing down. She would need to give him more reassurance. Unfortunately she had no updates from Bogo.

"Okay, stop," she told her brother, scowling at him when he slid between her and the door. "I'll be just a few blocks away. I can be here quickly if I have to. It's not like I'll never see you again."

Jack went back to wringing his paws as he paced. "Does he have a third bedroom? Maybe I can move in there too. Bunnies aren't meant to live alone. Everyone knows that. So long as us bunnies outnumber the foxes, it's okay."

Judy's mind raced to catch up, and she had to freeze her facial muscles to keep from laughing when she realized Jack was trying to convince himself that she was moving into a spare bedroom at Nick's place. She had never exactly said she intended to share a bed with Nick, so Jack was filling in his own imaginary details. "No…just a couch."

"I'm small. I could fit on the couch," Jack pleaded. "You'd hardly notice I was there."

Through the wall, Pronk and Bucky laughed. "I think they want some alone time, bunny."

If Jack heard them, he remained focused on Judy with that hopeful stare.

"No, no, absolutely no," she insisted, using her best mother voice. "This is a big deal for Nick and I. You need to learn to manage on your own. That was why Mom and Dad sent you to the city in the first place. Now that you have a part-time job, there's no reason you need to live with your big sister and her boyfriend."

Jack sniffled and Judy recognized that he was trying to manipulate her the way he had when they were younger.

"No!" Judy snapped, leveling a finger at him in warning. Instantly, Jack stopped. "A bunny here can live on their own. It's not the end of the world."

"But you aren't living alone, so why do I have to? You're moving in with…wait…"

The antelopes on the other side of the wall chuckled again, and Bucky said, "Uh-oh, he might figure it out."

"He has two bedrooms, right?" Jack demanded, and Judy realized the tables had turned. "You never said he did."

Putting one paw to her chest in mock surprise, Judy replied, "Didn't I? I'm certain I said he's got a three-room apartment with a big couch."

"Three bedroom or three room?" Pronk yelled through the wall.

"Quiet!" Judy snapped right back. "You aren't helping!"

"We aren't trying to!" Bucky said.

Growling, Judy rubbed her forehead and turned her attention back to her now horror-stricken brother. "Don't even say it, Jack."

Jack padded past Judy, went to the bed, and sat down beside her two suitcases and the stuffed fox doll. "That explains so much."

"Pardon?"

Motioning vaguely toward Judy, Jack seemed to be at a loss for words. Judy took the break to look over her outfit for anything that might be pertinent. Jeans and a shirt were all she was outwardly wearing, so there should have been nothing to make Jack worry about her. There was nothing at all out of the ordinary in what he could see. It was conservative, even by her standards.

"Use your words," Judy insisted, trying to ignore the latest snickers through the wall.

"I saw what you took to the shower to change into this morning," Jack finally answered, still gesturing sort of in her direction. "You never seemed like the sister I'd expected to have skimpy lacy lingerie, but if you're not taking his spare room…"

Judy squeaked loudly and ran to clamp a paw over Jack's mouth before he could add to that thought aloud. Somehow, locking it inside Jack's mind was fine, but speaking it would have made everything worse.

"And?" Pronk asked. "This is just getting good!"

"Shut up!" Bucky insisted.

Judy glowered at Jack, who stared up at her nervously with his muzzle still clamped shut under her fingers. "It's…um…sometimes a bunny just needs to feel sexy. Maybe it…uh…has nothing to do with Nick. Maybe you don't know what my wardrobe usually looks like. Maybe bunnies in Zootopia regularly wear lacey things."

"That's her way of saying she wants to show off for her boyfriend!" Bucky yelled.

Keeping her paws on Jack, Judy turned to face the wall. "Let me have my lies!"

"Nah, if you're moving out, we have to get in the digs while we can," Pronk said right back. "Don't worry, bunny, we'll keep an eye on your brother."

Slowly Judy eased her paws off Jack's muzzle. As she did, her phone chimed loudly. She was not expecting messages from anyone other than Bogo, so she picked it up and slid off the bed.

 _Call in immediately –Bogo_

The message made no sense to Judy. She was on leave until Thursday to move in with Nick, and the only thing happening was Rolen being moved to the ZBI's secure facility under the watch of both SWAT and the ZBI's own mammals. That should not have required more than a simple _"It's done"_ message.

"I have to take a call," Judy told Jack, trying to ignore the worried way he stared at her suitcases. "Be right back." She stepped into the hall and dialed Bogo's office number. He picked up on the first ring.

"Chief?" she asked, pacing down the length of the hallway. "I got your message. What's going on?"

The deep, grumbling sigh from Bogo made Judy's ears perk nervously. "Want to start with good news or bad?"

"Good news. I'm trying to keep a positive outlook. I'm on vacation and want to be upbeat."

"The good news," Bogo said, sighing again, "is that the officers and guards from Podunk, Bunnyburrow, and other surrounding communities arrived. They're training with the existing officers. The staffing crisis is averted until the next class of cadets graduates. The outlying regions are at a bit more risk, but they rarely see the trouble we do."

"I don't suppose we can go without the bad news?"

Bogo snorted. "You remember Rolen's claim that he wouldn't make it to trial?"

Judy pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at it. Her paw shaking, she brought it back up. "Yes. He was being overdramatic."

"According to the ZBI, one of their own has been arrested after firing two rounds into Rolen's chest during transportation," Bogo explained, and Judy could hear the despair in his voice. "Medical teams could not save him. They claim the officer was retaliating for the treatment of his family under Ursius rule."

"Do you believe that, sir?"

"Not for a moment, Hopps. ZBI has taken over the investigation and we're shut out. We can't even see the body, which strikes me as…suspicious. Nothing we can do about it. We just need to pick up the pieces."

"Is the media—?"

Bogo cut in immediately. "No. ZBI has ordered us to keep this quiet. As far as anyone's concerned, Rolen is in custody and will never see the light of day again. Leaking this information is grounds for disappearing into a ZBI prison the way he was supposed to."

"Understood. May I ask what you believe actually happened?"

The line stayed silent for almost a full minute. "I believe he escaped and they intend to capture him again before anyone finds out. I can't imagine him getting far in his condition."

"Thank you, sir. I'll…I don't know…I guess I'll try to disappear for a while."

"When you get to your hiding place, say hello to Wilde for me once your bags are unpacked," Bogo said, chuckling. "I expect my officers to be back on task Thursday. I see one public display and I'll have one of you suspended as an example. I'll flip a coin for which."

"Of course, sir. See you then."

As the call hung up, Judy took a deep breath to steady her nerves. She could not even be certain whether she was more rattled by Rolen's death or by Bogo having somehow found out she was moving in with Nick.

 _Clawhauser,_ she told herself, grumbling as she stalked back toward her apartment. _He's so set on doting over Nimr while he recovers that he must have slipped and told Bogo. I'll never hear the end of this around the coffee pot if it gets out to everyone…ugh…_

Coming around the doorframe, Judy stopped as she found Pronk and Bucky in her apartment with Jack. At her approach all three looked up.

"Since you're abandoning him, we thought we'd be polite," Bucky snapped, sounding anything but polite. "Introduce ourselves and stuff."

Judy's attention went to Jack, who looked more relieved than he had since she had told him she was moving out.

"They're going to take me out tonight," Jack explained, bouncing a little on the bed, his ears up for the first time in days. "Some kind of bar—"

"Whoa whoa, don't tell her everything," Pronk cut in quickly. "Girls don't understand. Boys' night out at an all-boys bar. Best way to cheer up."

Judy's ears slowly went up as she realized what kind of bar the married couple were probably taking her brother to. Still, it would be good for him to get out, whether that was his scene or not. Honestly Judy did not know if it was. With so many siblings, she had long since given up keeping track of who liked what. Either way, socializing—and being flirted with—would be a great way to keep Jack's mind off living alone.

"That's great, you guys," Judy answered, smiling broadly as she rocked from toes to heels. Avoiding talking about Rolen seemed best, and this gave her an easy out. "You mind if I get going?"

Jack hesitated, his ears sinking halfway, but the two antelopes sat down on either side of him on the bed as Pronk told her, "We got this, bunny. We'll watch out for him. You were a good neighbor, and we'll return the favor."

"Plus," Bucky quickly added, "we know you're a cop and we'll never walk down the street again without getting a ticket if we aren't good to him. We know the game."

Laughing—and pointedly not correcting them—Judy gave Jack a big hug and kissed his cheek. Grabbing both suitcases and tucking her fox doll under her arm, Judy turned to go, feeling like somehow this was an ending, when she knew it was a beginning. A long last look at Jack and the two antelopes gave her a bit more reassurance that Jack was in good paws.

Judy scampered out of the apartment before her resolve could waver, not slowing until she reached the sidewalk. Once there, she forced herself to calm down and walk more casually, intending to head for the subway that would get her to Nick's in two stops. To her surprise Finnick's van sat in front of the apartment building, and for a moment, Judy thought Nick had come to pick her up, even after she had insisted against it.

Then Judy saw Finnick in the driver's seat and felt her brief enthusiasm crumble. Ears sinking in a subconscious effort to shrink from sight, she turned to hurry off, hoping he had not seen her.

"Hey, bunny!" came Finnick's deep bellow. _So much for sneaking away_. "You gonna get in, or I gonna have to explain to Nicky why you walkin'? I'll follow you the whole way, shoutin' at you if I hafta. I promised him I'd bring you over, so we're gettin' there at the same time one way or another."

Judy took a long breath and let it out in a growl she really did not want Finnick to hear. She had promised Nick that she would attempt to be nice to him, but after the whole Silvia debacle, Judy was not sure she had it in her. She knew Finnick had not intentionally sabotaged things between her and Nick, but he was the clearest cause. Once the growl had passed, she forced herself to grin before turning around to face the van.

"Suuure," she managed to say, despite really wanting to tell Finnick to shove off. "It's only a few blocks. That'll save me some walking."

Begrudgingly getting into the passenger seat, Judy did not have a chance to attempt small talk before Finnick punched the gas and sped them off toward Nick's place. For the first block, she actually thought he might keep his mouth shut.

"Hey, so are we cool?" Finnick asked as they came to a stop at a light that already felt too long. "I know I screwed up hard on setting Nick up. I already told him I'm sorry and offered to buy him whiskey, but thought I should tell you too. Not the whiskey part. You don't seem like the whiskey type. Amaretto Sour? Wine?"

"We are cool," she answered, though she could barely make her jaw work. Judy knew she was being transparent, but did not have the heart to start this fight. "It'll take me a bit to get over things, but we will be fine, Finnick. You're Nick's friend and I respect that. And no, I won't say what my favorite drinks are."

"Get over things? You mean like the whole Officer Bitey thing?"

Judy's whole body went cold, and her stare must have actually rattled Finnick, as he cleared his throat and failed to go when the light changed.

"What…do…you…mean?" Judy demanded, wondering if her taser was within easy reach. "Bitey?"

"Oh…sorry," Finnick offered insincerely. "Been talk on the street about how some bunny went savage and bit the hell outta Nicky. Maybe it was someone else. Was kinda a joke. You know…bunny biting folks. Officer Bitey."

Judy clutched her suitcases a little closer as Finnick finally began driving again. _Only four more blocks. He can't be so awful that you can't make it that far._

"Yes, I bit Nick," she admitted, her fingers going numb from holding the bags too tightly. "Anyone who goes savage has those kind of reactions. You'd bite him too. He forgave me, so we aren't talking about that anymore. Would you mind stopping any talk about 'Officer Bitey' so I can get back my dignity?"

"Sure, yeah, I can do that."

Finnick stayed quiet for the next four blocks, until they were within sight of Nick's apartment, when Judy could tell that he had something he was dying to say.

"What?" she asked, dreading the answer. "What more is there?"

Finnick swallowed hard and pulled the van up to the curb across from Nick's place. "I been kinda scared to ask about the rest of the nickname. I think someone's just pullin' my tail, but…never mind. I don't wanna know."

Judy glared at Finnick, and he slowly began looking around outside the van for help that was not coming.

"Fine! They been calling you Officer Bitey McHumpy. I figure that's just takin' a cheap shot at what a bunny might do…"

Judy threw her suitcases onto the floor and leaped onto Finnick, ready to punch him until he swore never to speak to her again. Instead she perched atop him in his seat as he began laughing uncontrollably.

"Sorry, sorry!" Finnick gasped between guffaws. "I mighta made up that last part when Nick wouldn't talk about what happened. I was joking—mostly. Is easy to tell what he don't wanna talk about by how embarrassed he gets."

Judy waved her fist in front of Finnick's nose, and his giggling faded. "Don't ever bring it up again. No 'Officer Bitey' and definitely no 'Officer McHumpy.' I hear either and I'll be happy to explain to Nick why you have to eat through a straw."

"Right, whatever you say, officer," Finnick said through snickers. Judy could tell he had every intention of spreading those nicknames around. "I won't let Nicky I know about that, and I won't let you know about his secrets. Only fair."

Judy's nose twitched in irritation, but she refused to follow the bait. Slowly, she climbed down off Finnick and picked up her suitcases and the stuffed fox, which had fallen down between the seats. As she stood back up, she saw the mischievous gleam in Finnick's eyes as he stared at the doll, but when she turned her glare back on him, he looked away in a hurry.

"Thank you for the ride," Judy forced herself to say, opening the door of the van.

"Anything for you, Officer Hu…um…Hopps."

Judy's ears and tail twitched angrily, but she let it slip. Giving in to Finnick's banter would only make matters worse. She settled for getting out onto the sidewalk and slamming the door behind her. Turning around to cross the street once Finnick pulled away, Judy was surprised that he had moved to the passenger seat to look down at her.

"Hey, before I go," Finnick said, taking off his sunglasses. "All kiddin' aside, you been good for Nick. Never seen him this happy. I ain't never gonna act like this is all normal around him, but I did want you to know. He's stupid, but he's loyal. Don't hurt my brother, cuz I think he'd let you get away with anything. Be good to him like you've been so far."

"Thank you," Judy answered, finally feeling a touch of kinship with Finnick. "I would never hurt Nick."

"Better not. And you better invite me to the bachelor party if there's a damn wedding."

"We…I…no…uh…that hasn't…"

"I'm kiddin'! Geeze. You bunnies. No sense of humor."

While Judy kept trying to find words as her ears blushed, Finnick crawled back to his seat and drove off, waving halfheartedly as he went.

"Little monster," Judy muttered, shaking off the embarrassment and hoping she could hide the blushing before she reached Nick's apartment. Then she remembered what she was wearing under her regular clothing and felt a fresh wave of embarrassment. She wanted it to be a surprise, but she was not certain she could make herself show off like that. Maybe she could just sneak off and change when he was not looking.

 _You can do this, Judy_ , she told herself, straightening her shoulders as she made her way through the apartment building. Taking a deep breath, she adjusted her loose-fitting shirt so her frilly undergarment would be visible if Nick paid attention. If he was oblivious, she would have to get creative. _Nick will talk to Mom and Dad, and they'll have to be okay with it…after I get a panicked phone call. Today, it's about us. One night may not be much—well, one night and that little session when I got released from the hospital Thursday—but this is good for us. We're two adults and we don't need our parents' permission…_

Judy reached Nick's apartment door, and the thought trailed off as she heard voices through the not-quite-closed door. Easing it open gently, she watched as her father raced past, carrying a bunny-sized chair that was most certainly not Nick's.

Confusion overcoming surprise, Judy opened the door the rest of the way and saw her father was arranging furniture from Bunnyburrow around the front room, under the guidance of Nick's mother. From the look of things, most of her furniture from her old bedroom was now scattered around the apartment.

"They can't see the television from there," Nick's mother insisted, pointing over near the couch. "Chairs should be over here. If Nick can't see the television, he won't use the furniture."

Stu shook his head and gestured toward the window. "Jude likes to read by the window on rainy days. All the other chairs can go over there, but this one should stay here."

Judy stepped fully into the apartment and put her suitcases and her fox doll down, staring at the two in disbelief. More than that, she found herself gaping in shock at the way the apartment had been rearranged—and cleaned. It was far from "clean," but it was tolerable for living in, which was saying a lot after how it had been during her last visit.

"Then put one of Nick's sleeping chairs near it," the vixen replied, shaking her head as she came over to Judy. "Maybe he'll actually pick up a book for the first time in years, instead of using them to level his table."

Before Judy could say anything, Nick's mother reached down and shifted her shirt to cover the lacy bits showing at her low collar. That acknowledgement of what she was wearing made Judy's ears and nose heat and her tail to sink low in embarrassment.

"It's our secret," the older vixen whispered to Judy, winking. "I hope we're not intruding. Nicholas wanted some advice and wanted to talk to your parents. We all discussed it and decided that he's hopeless and we should make sure this place is fit for living."

Judy tried to talk, but no words came out. At the entrance to the kitchen, Nick appeared briefly, mouthing the words "Help me!" before Judy's mother grabbed the apron he was wearing and dragged him back out of sight.

"Bonnie is trying to teach him to cook," Nick's mother added, her tail sinking flat to the floor as she shook her head. "You do know how to work a fire extinguisher? It may be a valuable skill in the next few minutes."

"Yes, ma'am."

Nick's mother's ears shot up and she glowered at Judy. "Not acceptable."

Judy stared back in fear that she had said something wrong. Looking to her father, she found he was still adjusting chairs and was oblivious.

"Call me mom or Marian, Judy," Nick's mother insisted, turning her attention back to Judy's father. "You're going to hurt yourself, Stu. Make Nick move that chair."

Judy quickly excused herself, making sure to call Nick's mother "Mom" before she slid away into the hall that led to the kitchen, taking her suitcases and doll with her. There, she found Nick was not just in full apron, but also wearing two oven mitts that appeared new, while Bonnie was instructing him on the steps to make a carrot casserole. Through the directions, Nick looked terrified, and even more so whenever Bonnie motioned toward the oven. Judy picked up the scent of both burned fur and carrots, and had to wonder how much she had missed.

"Um…Nick?" Judy asked nervously, trying to figure out how to deal with any of what was going on. She had expected to be having "the talk" with her parents in a few days, not in person and in her new home the day she had arrived. She had planned to be settled in long before they had the chance to object. "Where should I…my things?"

Nick looked at her helplessly and held up his oven mitts, as though that explained everything.

After a moment Judy's mother bustled over and picked up one suitcase and the fox doll. "We made sure that he picked up that awful bedroom. Your father has set you up a nice little nesting spot with pillows and blankets on the couch, but some of us are not in denial. You can put that all away once we leave."

Judy followed numbly as her mother led her to Nick's bedroom—which was rearranged and sported new sheets, blinds, and pillows—where Bonnie placed Judy's suitcase alongside the bed. Judy actually realized that the room's dresser was usable, as all of Nick's clothes must have gone into it or had been thrown out.

Holding up the fox doll, Bonnie cocked her head. "That's adorable, bun bun…and a little creepy given the situation. I'll assume that's a gift from Nick. We'll just put that between the pillows. If your father asks, I didn't do it and I must have been confused when I put your suitcase in here. You know how scatterbrained I can be."

Movement behind Judy made her look back and up at Marian, who stood leaning against the doorframe, her paws clasped in front of her. "I'll talk with Stu," she told Judy and her mother. "If he starts sputtering again, may I remind him that he told me about the scandal when you two got together?"

Judy's ears shot up. She actually had not heard of any sordid details of her parents' early relationship. In fact, they had made quite a story of how dull their formative years had been.

"Certainly!" Bonnie answered. "Serves him right for spouting off about that to look more understanding than he is. I won't be nearly as nice if he starts talking about setting up a fox taser on display in the front room."

Judy raised one paw to try and cut in, but no one was even paying attention to her. The two mothers began discussing how best to put Stu in his place if he mouthed off, leaving Judy feeling entirely out of place. Turning on her heel, she slipped from the room in a hurry, making her way back to the kitchen.

"Nick!" Judy hissed, slipping around the edge of the wall inside the kitchen so she was not visible to anyone in the hall or bedroom.

Nick glanced over his shoulder at her, even as he carefully lifted the casserole onto the top of the stove. He stared at it for a few extra seconds, as if afraid it might explode, before he tossed aside his mitts and turned to look at her.

"Get out while you can," Nick whispered, peeking past her at the hall. "My mother wants to teach you how to cook fried chicken."

Judy's ears shot up and she felt a little ill at the thought. "That's…ew… You mean the bug protein patties that taste like chicken?"

"No!" he snapped, pointing at the fridge. "First off, anyone who tells you protein patties taste like chicken are either lying or prey. Second, there's an actual chicken. In there. She won't let me prepare it because she wants you to get your paws dirty. I don't even know where she found a place that sells them!"

Judy gagged and could tell that Nick felt bad for her, despite his own panic. "Why are they here, Nick?"

Throwing both arms up in the air helplessly, Nick shook his head. "I have no idea, Fluff! I called my mom to see if she knew any recipes you might like. Next thing I know, Bonnie's on the phone. Your parents were at my mom's place. When I tried to get off the phone, they told me they'd be right over. I've been with the three of them since nine this morning. This is the third casserole."

Biting back a snicker, Judy looked around the kitchen for the other casseroles. Her attention finally drifted to the trash can, which looked to be almost full with discarded—and badly burned—casseroles.

"So what have you told them?" she asked, ears turning to follow Marian and her own mother as they went to talk to her father. "Did you explain…you know…about us?"

Frantic nonsensical arm-waving followed, until Nick appeared calm enough to speak. "Yes! Sort of? No, not really. When they came over, I meant to. Instead they already knew that we were kind of together, thanks to my mom, though I'm not certain they took it as more than friends. When your father went out to get carrots for the casseroles, I tried to explain to your mom that we were…dating?"

"Yes, dating. I'm good with that word if you are. What'd she say?"

"Before or after my mother got done laughing?"

"After!"

Nick rolled his eyes. "I can probably teach a sex education class about bunnies now, and I think it somehow makes me know less than I did before. Did you know you have an erogenous zone on your—"

"Nooo!" Judy snapped, her ears hot with embarrassment and falling to her back. She bounced on her toes, waving her arms to make him stop. "Are they okay with us?"

"Okay? I have no idea. The moms are amused, sure. Your father is probably going to curl up in the fetal position and cry if he stops arranging my apartment. After they all sit down and think about it, I have no idea what they really will say."

Judy groaned and put her face in both paws. "This is you taking care of things?"

"I have a casserole."

Laughing in spite of herself, Judy let her arms drop and stared at Nick in dismay. "Do we go out and have the talk for real, or do we let your mother do it for us?"

"I have a plan," Nick said, coming over and putting his paws on her shoulders. "My mom will eventually start talking about my childhood. It's unavoidable."

"Okay…"

"When she does, we run. I think we can be out of the city before she knows we left."

"Nick! We are not running away!" Sighing, Judy thumped her forehead against his good side. "We'll go out there and sit them all down. Once they're calm—"

"We run away?"

"—we tell them the truth."

"That's the worst plan I've ever heard," Nick said, lifting her chin so they were looking each other in the eyes. "I'm willing to do it, if that's what you want. Don't you think they know the truth by now? I mean, both moms are informed. Isn't that good enough?"

"Not really," Judy replied, shrugging. "So long as my dad's in denial, that means I can't talk to any of my siblings or cousins about it, and even my mom will pretend like she doesn't believe it. We need to sit them all down."

Nick whined and nodded. "Fine. Let's get it over with."

Judy reached over and took Nick's paw in hers, holding tightly as she led him into the hall. To her relief both mothers had moved into the front room with Stu, making the wrangling portion of the talk that much easier. She led Nick into that room, where all three parents were standing around evaluating the couch.

"We need to replace that," Marian noted, pointing with a claw as she frowned. "That couch was rescued from a dumpster when Nicholas was half his current age. It wasn't in great shape then. It may be older than I am."

Nick growled softly. "Mom, we work at the ZPD. There's not a lot of extra money for fancy couches. Imagine we were both gainfully employed at the Veggie Hut on the registers. It pays about that well."

Before Judy could intervene, Nick's mother raised an eyebrow and stared at Nick until Judy could feel him shrinking back without having to look at him. Judy dearly wanted to learn how Marian did that.

"It's an awful day when Nick finds himself that destitute," Marian remarked, crossing her arms. "Good thing my savings are so surprisingly healthy. One might think that I was an investment genius. I'd love to know how I did it. I'd be happy to pay for a couch out of _my_ savings, and I'm certain Nick won't object. If he did, I would need to go over my savings more carefully and determine what I should have in there."

Judy felt like she was missing something. When she looked back, Nick refused to meet her eyes. Not an issue she was ready to throw down over, so it could wait. The topic of money nagged at the edge of her thoughts, but she could not fathom why Nick's mother was able to hold that over his head. She knew money was tight, but this entire conversation felt odd.

"We'll look at getting a new couch," Judy offered, trying to get back to what she wanted to discuss. "Can we all talk for a moment?"

Marian slowly sat on a chair across from the couch, smoothing her skirt, while Bonnie came over to stand near the television, gesturing for Nick and Judy to take the couch. Meanwhile, Stu wrung his paws and appeared ready to walk out of the apartment entirely. Judy could tell he had a good idea what was coming.

"Okay," Judy said, stalling as she led Nick to the couch. She hopped up—realizing it really did need replacing, given the springs she could feel through the cushions—and pulled Nick over beside her. "We wanted to talk to you about—"

Before Judy could finish the thought, Stu came over and wiggled his way between Judy and Nick to sit in the middle of the couch. Judy found herself at a loss for words as she stared in disbelief at her father, who smiled nervously back at her. This was not going to be quite as easy as she had hoped.

Clearing his throat, Nick picked up where Judy had left off. "What Judy was trying to say is that we think it's time that all of you understand exactly what's going on. Judy isn't just my roommate. You might have guesses, but we want it out in the open."

Stu leaned closer to Judy and pointed at a pile of blankets and pillows on the floor beside the couch, hidden away in the corner of the room. He gave her a thumbs-up and grinned. "Since I couldn't find another bedroom, I set those out for when you're sleeping on the couch. I hope you're not paying too much of the rent."

Judy covered her face with her paws so she did not have to look at her father.

"Riiight," Nick said, and Judy could clearly hear the dismay in his voice. "Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that Judy and I are dating. The next step in our relationship was to move in together. I didn't want anyone here to think we were trying to lie about exactly what that meant."

Judy turned her head to look at her father through her fingers and realized that despite his fake smile, he was digging in his jacket pocket for something. Reaching over, Judy grabbed his paw and yanked it and a fox taser out of his pocket. "Dad, drop it!" Judy ordered, holding tightly to his wrist. "Nick's telling the truth. We're together and I'm moving in because I want to. If you tase him, so help me, I will arrest you. If I get brought up on charges for police brutality to my own father, that's on you."

"Right, right, I absolutely understand, Jude," Stu replied, releasing his grip on the taser, which Judy took and dropped over the side of the couch so it would be far out of his reach. "And you're sleeping…where?"

"In Nick's bed." Judy glared at her father, daring him to argue.

Stu swallowed hard and looked over at Nick, whose nervousness seemed to finally be fading. "Okay. That makes sense. Where's Nick sleeping?"

"Oh, for poultry's sake," blurted out Marian, and all eyes went to her. "Stu, do you think your daughter is a child who can't make decisions for herself?"

"No."

"Do you think she's some innocent little bunny angel that my Nick is corrupting?"

"Not…um…no?"

"Then what is the problem?" Marian smiled warmly at Judy, but then her expression chilled as she went back to watching Stu. "How many of her siblings moved in with someone by her age? How many more had children of their own at this point?"

"About a hundred and fifty on the first part. Probably two hundred on the second. I just…um…"

"Spit it out. What's the issue?"

Stu sputtered and looked between all of them frantically. Finally, defeated, he flopped back on the couch. "I'm still having a problem with the fox thing."

"Fox…thing?" Marian asked slowly, turning to give Bonnie a questioning look. Judy's mother shrugged and shook her head. "You two are staying in my home. Are you afraid for your lives? Afraid I might sneak in and ravish you or bite you? Might I remind you that you eat my cooking."

Judy sat up and smiled smugly at her father, seeing the argument he was having with himself clearly on his face. He wanted to defend his daughter, and even if he could find ways to be comfortable around foxes, he did not entirely trust them with his children.

"Okay, fine," Stu finally told them, holding up his paws to stop any further debate. "I get it. I don't want to think about it, but I get it. No objections from me. Maybe a little complaining that I don't get grandkits, but that's it. I'll keep my mouth shut."

Judy let out a sigh of relief, relaxing until she saw the mischievous smirk on Marian's face. She knew that smirk from Nick. There was about to be some seriously inappropriate humor.

"Don't you worry about that," Marian offered, leaning forward to pat Stu's knee. "I have confidence it won't be for lack of them trying. They're just trying to do right by you. I'm certain that your concerns will prompt them to try even harder."

Judy sank back into the couch, pulling her ears across her face. This had gone from awkward to horrifying. A quick glance to her side let her know that Nick was doing little better, his eyes wide and ears low as he stared at his mother.

"I…thanks?" Stu managed to mutter, wringing his paws again. "Maybe we should go?"

Bonnie finally spoke up as she came to the couch in front of Stu. "That may be best. If we wait any later, we won't have time to go looking at couches and other furnishings these two need."

"Missus Hopps, we don't need anything," Nick objected, but no one aside from Judy seemed to be listening anymore. "Really. We don't need anyone buying us a new couch."

"And a new bed," Marian added, standing up slowly as Stu and Bonnie joined her. "That thing is old and too small, even given Judy's size. It'll look too tiny in your new apartment."

"No really," Nick tried again. "We don't…wait…new apartment?"

Marian waved dismissively. "When you get one. This certainly isn't a forever home. I'm certain you'll find the money somewhere. I'm planning ahead. No pressure at all. I'll e-mail you a few dozen listings tonight to look over."

Judy slid over beside Nick and grabbed his paw. She did not feel like they had any control over the discussion anymore and wanted him to stay quiet before Marian bullied anyone into anything else. The trembling she felt in his grip let her know he was equally rattled. Deep down, Judy wanted to see how Marian handled Finnick.

Stu and Bonnie headed for the door, whispering as they went. Judy could not hear most of it, but the word "sorry" was uttered by her father more times than she had heard in her life. Judy moved to follow them out to say good-bye, but Marian planted her cane in front of Judy, stopping her.

"A word, Judy?"

Looking back to Nick, Judy got a confused shrug in reply.

"Nicholas," Marian said, turning her attention to Nick. "You should go get the chicken ready. It would go well with the carrot casserole, and you'll need to help her start cooking soon if you intend to have it for dinner. We'll be right back."

Judy felt abruptly nervous and was not entirely sure it was just about the chicken, though that weighed most heavily on her mind. The idea of touching a dead animal made her stomach churn. Even dealing with insect-based protein patties made her uncomfortable if she thought on it too much.

"Let's talk outside, dear," Nick's mother told her, taking Judy's paw and leading her out into the hall. As they got outside, Stu and Bonnie meandered down the hall, making an obvious attempt to allow Marian and Judy a moment alone. "Do you know why I wanted to talk to you?"

"Not really." Judy resisted the urge to begin biting at her claw. She had no idea why she was so nervous. "I do appreciate most of the things you said in there. That helped a lot dealing with my father."

Marian waved away the praise and closed the apartment door behind them. "That was nothing, Judy. I was your age once. I wished then that I had someone to speak up for me when my parents objected to Nick's father. It was the least I could do for you two."

A drunken beaver wandered down the hall, stopping to stare at Judy and Marian. Somehow, a slight narrowing of Marian's eyes set the beaver back on her way. Soon they were alone again in the hall.

"Now," Marian began again, returning her attention to Judy. "Can we be blunt, Judy?"

"Of course."

Marian nodded and thought a moment before continuing. "My Nicholas has had a lot of…shall we say…bad choices? I don't think you're one of them."

"Thank you, Missus Wi—"

"Marian or mom. You really need to break that habit, Judy. What I wanted to talk to you about is a rather touchy issue."

Judy swallowed hard and clasped her paws together. "Okay. Did I do something wrong?"

"Not at all." Marian bent down, using her cane to support herself as she brought her nose down to be level with Judy's. "Let's keep it that way. If Silvia were still alive, I would find a way to make her spend the rest of her life regretting the way she treated my Nicky. A mother can be overly protective. When Nick falls for someone, he falls hard. I think you're a great match for him and I wish you both the best, but if you hurt him…expect that I will be at your door. I don't know how bunnies view relationships, nor do I care. If you break his heart, we will have a long talk about that, and given that I'm not afraid to put Nick over my knee to this day, you would be less of a bother. Are we abundantly clear, Judy?"

Judy stared in disbelief into the warm eyes of Nick's mother, seeing no anger or hostility there, despite her tone. "I…I wouldn't ever try to hurt him. No matter what you might think, I do love Nick. I'm not looking for some kind of fling, if that's what you're worried about."

"Glad to hear it," Marian replied, standing up. She glanced toward the apartment door and smiled. "Nicholas has a bad habit of not asking the right questions to alleviate his concerns. I'm certain he appreciates what you just said." Lifting her cane, Marian banged it against the apartment door and Judy faintly heard Nick yelp and move away. Nick's mother waited a few extra seconds, as though trying to be certain Nick would not listen in again.

"I should get going, Judy. Your parents aren't going to get far without me to let them into the condo, and I'm certain your father still needs a bit of prodding to get through this." Leaning down again, Nick's mother kissed Judy on the top of her head, startling her a little. "If you need anything, let me know. Nick's a handful, and I expect you'll want to tear your fur out in a week or two. Be patient and talk to me or Finnick if it gets bad."

"I'd rather not talk to Finnick."

Marian's smile faded and she nodded knowingly. "He means well, but he doesn't understand those who need emotion—and love—in their lives. To him, talking Nick into hooking up with someone for a few days was probably intended to be kind and supportive. I still intend to have words with him about that. You may not want to hear what he has to say, but he does know Nick better than anyone."

Smiling sheepishly, Judy kept quiet.

Touching Judy's shoulder gently, Marian turned and went down the hall in the same direction as Stu and Bonnie, then disappeared through the door into the staircase. The click of the door closing felt jarring and incredibly final to Judy as she tried to wrap her mind around the day. She let her hind paw tap the floor nervously a moment before going back into the apartment.

"Is she done scolding you?" Nick asked, sitting on the couch. He was putting on a show of annoyance, but Judy could see the worry in the way his tail was rigid and his ears shot up at her approach. "That wasn't okay what she was saying out there…"

Judy shrugged and came over to stand in front of the couch. "She's protecting her child, the same way my father wants to. Don't let it get to you. At least she didn't bring a taser."

Nick's scowl deepened and he held up a stack of index cards covered with recipes. Most were fairly routine, but Judy spotted several that included chicken or fish. Near the bottom was a note that read "Only if needed." Beneath that note was a recipe for roast rabbit that Judy was absolutely certain had been made up on the spot.

"Not so different from your father. She left those on the television," Nick said, tossing the cards onto the pile of blankets beside the couch. A slow smile spread across Nick's muzzle and he leaned toward her, batting his eyelashes ridiculously. "Now that they're all gone, I wondered if we could talk about that promise you made?"

"Promise?" Judy asked, putting her paws behind her back and doing her best innocent expression, though she could not help but have her ears perk. "I promised to move in. Not sure what you're talking about."

"Some nonsense about what would happen if I got the place cleaned up. You didn't say anything about me doing it by myself."

Judy nodded and looked around the apartment. The place was almost spotless, though she knew that had more to do with their parents than Nick's efforts. Her own willpower was wavering, but she had to take the opportunity to tease him. "I did say what wouldn't happen if you left it a mess. I don't think I said something would happen if you cleaned."

"Nice try, but I'm the hustler here. I kept up my part of the bargain."

Judy sighed and motioned toward the pile of blankets near the couch. "That still looks like a mess. I've seen the kitchen. That was pretty bad."

Nick groaned and flopped back. After a moment, he flipped onto his stomach to look over the couch's arm at the blankets. In doing so he left his tail wagging right near Judy's face. Subtle, he was not.

"I can have those put away in a minute or two," he said, smirking over his shoulder, still trying to make his tail as enticing as possible. Judy wanted to pounce it, but had no intention of giving him that satisfaction. Not for a minute or two, which was about as long as she thought she could keep playing stubborn. "The kitchen may take a little longer."

Untucking her shirt, Judy slid it off and dropped it beside the couch, and Nick's eyes went wide. All of the mischief was gone from his expression as he stared at the lacy undergarment she had been hiding.

"Guess you should get to that," Judy insisted, grinning as she wandered toward the hall. She could hear Nick following and she unbuttoned her pants and kicked them off as she made her way past the kitchen and bedroom. To her amusement Nick whined as soon as her new lacy undies were visible. "You remember what I said—nothing happens until the place is spotless. I'll be in the shower."

"The…shower?" Nick asked, still following right up to the bathroom door. His eager demeanor changed abruptly to what Judy could only describe as a pouting puppy expression. "Are you really going to leave me out here? Alone and sad?"

Judy slid into the bathroom and half-closed the door so Nick could only see her face. "You want me to leave you with something to remember while you finish cleaning?"

Nick stood up straight and grinned. "That I do. Absolutely."

Shaking her head, Judy reached out and placed her negligée into his paws, thankful he had not noticed her slip out of it. "That'll have to do for now. I can't go breaking my promises."

Nick's eyes went from the lingerie in his paws to Judy's face and back repeatedly. After a few seconds, he dashed away into the kitchen, and Judy could hear frantic tossing of pots and pans into cupboards. Judy had little doubt that the next time she opened a cupboard, something would fall on her.

"Dumb fox," she muttered, closing the door. Turning on the shower, she sighed happily as she sat down on the edge of the tub, letting the warm water hit her paw. It would be nice to have a shower that she was only sharing with Nick and not every resident of her floor.

A year before, she had not imagined having anyone in her life, let alone wanted that. Now, she could not picture herself without. "No… _my_ dumb fox."


	42. Chapter 10-2

**The Pursuit, Chapter 10.2 – Brief Closure**

 **August 9** **th** **, Tuesday Afternoon – Podunk, Deerbrooke County**

The Zootopia Express pulled into the station a little late, allowing disembarking shortly after three. A hundred different mammals got off with their luggage, hurrying to meet relatives and friends that were waiting on the platform for them.

One of the last to leave, the raccoon kept her large suitcases close at hand as she walked across the platform and out of the train station without anyone to meet her. Several of the deer and elk who manned the station watched her go, but it was not unusual to get mammals of nearly any species coming through on a given day, even if they did not get a lot of predators in Podunk.

The raccoon made her way out of the bustling area around the station and wandered until she reached the main street nearby. There, she waited patiently with one paw up until a taxi cab rolled to a stop in front of her.

"Where to?" asked the doe who drove the cab, as the raccoon finished pushing her suitcases into the backseat and climbed in herself.

Looking at the town around her, Jenna Loam tried to get a lay of the land. She had expected something more elaborate for a place that held almost twelve million deer, elk, moose, and other prey. If anything, it was more spread out than she had hoped for. After a moment, she spotted a large housing district in the distance that she guessed was where much of the non-farming community lived. Given the ridiculous amount of food needed to keep the town alive, she doubted more than a million of the residents actually lived inside the town.

"That way," she told the driver, pointing one claw toward the housing. "Just drop me off at the edge of the first apartment building."

The driver pulled out and wove through the dense afternoon traffic, crossing the town quickly. "You here on business or for family?" she asked as they neared the apartments.

"Both," Jenna replied, checking her suitcases to be certain they were still tightly closed after the train ride. "Finishing something up for an old employer. After that, I'll get to see my family again. Should be pretty busy for the next day."

The deer nodded knowingly, though Jenna knew the vague statement had given nothing away. She needed things to stay that way a little longer.

The taxi pulled up to the apartments, and Jenna climbed out, then reached back in to give the driver a pawful of money.

"That's…wow…way more than the fare," the deer told her, still holding up the wad of bills. "Are you sure?"

Jenna nodded and slid her suitcases onto the curb beside her. "Do something nice for yourself this afternoon. I insist."

The driver thanked her and drove off, leaving Jenna on the corner, surrounded by dozens of deer who were wrapped up in their own lives. She did not see a single mammal glance at her, even as she carried the heavy suitcases through the town's sidewalks toward a small park between two of the largest apartment buildings. There, she sat on a bench with the suitcases in easy reach.

Jenna checked around her for anyone looking her way, but the townsfolks were too distracted with their daily chores. With the work-day wrapping up, hundreds, if not thousands, of mammals were making their way into their homes all around her. She could wait another few hours, if only to ensure that they were all home.

Reaching into her coat, Jenna removed a wrinkled letter she had read more times than the paper had ever been meant to endure. She had been carrying it for much of a year, but this was the last day she would need it. Unfolding the letter with her claws, she went over it one more time.

 _Your faithfulness has been noted. As my father and his before him promised, those who serve without question will be rewarded. Once I am gone, my work is far from complete. The instructions will be delivered to you by courier and the tools later. Those loyal to my family will be watching. Should you do as we discussed before arriving in the city, your own family will be released from their bonds. A thousand lives for one of theirs. Be true to your oath._

Jenna closed the paper and looked around at the apartments again. Thirty floors each, with four such buildings in close proximity. She had to hope it was enough. She only needed three thousand.

An hour later as the sun finally set, Jenna sighed and nodded to herself. There was no more sense in waiting.

Opening the closest suitcase, Jenna pulled out two long wires that were attached to the electronics within. She knew very little about the device and did not care to know more. Taking the wires, she slid them into holes on the side of the other suitcase, where they clicked into place. Immediately lights within the open suitcase came on. They had not even trusted her enough to provide a button or timer. It was all automated, and she no longer had any control over what would happen.

Sighing, she leaned back against the park table as the suitcases hummed beside her. Jenna carefully pulled a small fang-tooth necklace out and kissed it—a traditional salute to the Ursius family. She whispered a prayer to the warlords, hoping she had done enough to ensure her family's safety in this life and praise for her in the next. What she was doing was horrific, but it was her honor and duty to obey the ruling family, even after their deaths. This was far from the only time she had been forced to do something repugnant, though it was easily the worst.

"Forgive me, Dad," she whispered, putting the necklace back into her shirt. "It's the only way to free you. I'm sorry. He wanted their numbers thinned. It's the right thing to do. This is for the greater good."

The hum of the suitcases abruptly went silent, and Jenna closed her eyes. Thankfully, the explosion that toppled all four buildings killed her instantly, so she never experienced the pain and grief that thousands of surviving mammals did when the dust cleared and the bodies were being bought out. Nearly ten thousand deaths across the northeastern part of Podunk would be remembered for generations.


	43. Chapter 10-3

**The Pursuit, Chapter 10.3 – Brief Closure**

 **Late August – Unknown Location**

 _As a child, I looked at love as something idiots got involved with, largely thanks to my father. Hiding from those feelings and most others gave one a chance to see the world the way many still do: dark, hostile, and only worth hustling. Love isn't something we choose to have or not. It's something we find and then must choose whether to accept. If you refuse, you might never find it again, though some are lucky enough to get a second chance. Trust me, the pursuit of love is worth it. The more you put into love, the more you try to be the best you that you can be, the more you get out of it in return. Risking nothing means you will get nothing. Refusing to be hurt is a choice you can make, but you will lose so much more by hiding from yourself. You have to open up. You have to risk yourself. You have to love to be loved._

Nick froze before starting to write the next sentence, realizing he was being watched. Turning slightly, he saw Judy was sitting up on their bedding, her sleepy violet eyes trying to catch a glimpse of his laptop. In the deep darkness around them, the screen had to have been blinding.

"What are you doing?" she asked, rubbing her face. "It's three in the morning. We have to be up at dawn."

"I'm…I'm taking notes like Bogo asked."

Judy might have been half-asleep, but she glowered at him the way she did when she knew he was lying. "You're writing an award acceptance speech again, aren't you?"

"You never know when I might need it." Nick closed his laptop and slid it into his backpack. "I have to get it just right. They're bound to give us awards after all this."

Judy pulled Nick back into the sleeping bag and rubbed her chin against his neck as they settled in. "We're off the books, Slick. No one's giving an award for a secret mission. Kind of defeats the purpose."

"Fine, be that way." Nick slid a little farther down into the sleeping bag, as Judy draped her leg across him. Despite the chill nights, they had yet to get cold in the shared bedding, though Nick could still not fathom how Judy slept well in their surroundings.

Nick zipped the sleeping bag up to his chest, leaving his head and shoulders, as well as the top of Judy's head, out in the cool air. Pulling her close, he looked up at the tall vine-covered trees that surrounded them and the brilliant glow of the moon overhead. Somewhere in the distance, he could faintly hear the rumbles of the nearby river.

 _Two more days to the coast_ , he told himself, wishing that was somehow reassuring. _Two more days to pretend like this is a vacation._

Reaching down alongside them inside the bag, Nick checked to be sure his handgun had not slid too far. Once he knew that he could grab it in a hurry, he looked over at Fangmeyer sleeping on one side, and Spetz and Cannus on the other. The three had been quiet for days, mentally preparing themselves for what was to come. Their other companions were off watching for threats, but Nick was happier that they were gone.

"I still wish you hadn't come along," Nick whispered near Judy's ear, stroking her back with his fingertips. More than once, his claws brushed the collar she wore, making his stomach tighten at the wrongness of it. "This isn't Zootopia. You aren't safe here."

Judy nodded against him and dug her claws into his fur. "I know. I belong wherever you are, even if it's a bad idea. Besides, you're not safe either. Who better to protect my fox than me?"

"Better get that out of your system quick. Saying that in public could get us all killed."

Sighing, Judy finally looked up at him. "I think that's going to be the hardest part, aside from having to stay away from you at night. Try to catch me if I slip."

Nick pulled her tight to him and kissed the base of her ears. "I love you, Carrots, no matter what I have to call you here. We should get some sleep, though."

The rest of the night, Nick kept his eyes shut and waited for elusive sleep to come. Judging by the sound of Judy's breathing, she was doing no better.

[The End…for now]


End file.
